Premier Li Keqiang urged the promotion of supply-side reform in agriculture and improvement of farmers’ income through instructions given to a meeting on spring farming on March 21 and 22.

According to the Premier, governments at all levels should pay more attention to agricultural logistics, water conservancy, flood control, drought relief and weather forecasts as the spring farming season comes.

Agricultural and rural development systems should be improved. Agricultural economy should be transformed by encouraging business startups, improving the quality of agricultural products and competitiveness in the market, the Premier emphasized.

He also urged the construction of modern agricultural industry zones.

Vice-Premier Wang Yang attended the meeting and made specific points, stressing the importance of agricultural production in springtime, which the stable development of agriculture and farmers’ well-being depend on.

He said that agricultural activities should focus on supply-side structural reform, and technological guidance and information services should be provided to farmers. Structural adjustments should be promoted, and quality and efficiency should be enhanced, with more exploration in profit mechanisms to encourage farmers to participate in secondary and tertiary industries, he added.

Various forms of scale operations of agriculture and cooperation between leading companies and farmers should be encouraged to help farmers adapt to modern agriculture.

The vice-premier also called for water-saving projects, tree planting, fire prevention and improvement of the weather forecast service.