The State Council Information Office has briefed the media on China’s first policy document of 2016. Authorities released the document on Jan 27. It underscores the importance of rural reform and developing modern agriculture. This is the 13th year in a row that the number one central document focuses on agriculture. Chen Xiwen, deputy director of the Central Rural Work Leading Group, spoke of the importance of faster transformation of agricultural models.

“The most important is to follow through on the guidelines of the 5th Plenum of the 18th Communist Party of China Central Committee. That is, the opinions in the 13th Five-Year Plan for economic and social development, the most important of which is to advance innovative, coordinated, green, open and shared development in the rural sector. We also need to follow that approach so as to have sustainable and sound development of the rural areas,” Chen said.

The key policy document from the CPC Central Committee and the State Council says that China will apply new development concepts to achieve moderate prosperity in rural areas. The document also calls for improving output capacity to ensure grain security and supply, and at the same time work on narrowing the urban-rural income gap.