context: Following the guidance provided at the Central Economic Work Conference, the Central Rural Work Conference emphasises the role of maintaining food security and preventing relapse into poverty in stablising rural society and state's economy as a whole. In 2025, observers can expect concrete measures to compensate grain-producing provinces by moving resources from developed regions. Farmland will be placed under stricter supervision, with the establishment of a monitoring system. The long existing loopholes of high-standard farmland project management are likely to be targeted.
The Central Rural Work Conference, held in Beijing from 17–18 December, has laid down the strategic guidelines for the PRC's ag and rural development in 2025.
President Xi Jinping 习近平 emphasised that in 2024, the PRC's grain production reached new heights, farmers' incomes steadily increased and rural societies remained stable. For 2025, he stressed the importance of adhering to the principles of urban-rural integration, deepening rural reforms, improving policies that strengthen ag and benefit farmers and promoting comprehensive rural revitalisation.
Ensuring food security is a critical responsibility. Continuous efforts are needed to strengthen the supply capacity for grains and other strategic products, stabilise grain planting areas and advance large-scale yield improvement actions for oilseed and cereal crops. Disaster prevention and mitigation capabilities in ag must be enhanced to ensure stable and abundant grain production. Emphasis will also be placed on protecting farmland and improving its quality, with strict management of farmland occupation and compensation balance, establishing monitoring systems for farmland use and overseeing the quality of high-standard farmland projects as well as fund safety.
Promoting collaborative research among ag scitech forces and accelerating the widespread application of scientific achievements were highlighted. There will be support for developing new types of ag productivity suited to local conditions. A sound policy system for grain production will be established, including the implementation of inter-provincial horizontal compensation mechanisms under central coordination for grain production and sales areas.
The coordination mechanism for ag trade and production will be improved to maintain reasonable price levels for grains. Efforts will also be made to build a diversified food supply system, support the steady development of animal husbandry and establish long-term mechanisms for reducing food loss.
Attention will be given to consolidating and expanding the achievements of poverty alleviation, improving the effectiveness of monitoring and assistance mechanisms for preventing relapse into poverty and coordinating the establishment of a tiered and categorised assistance system for low-income populations and less developed regions in rural areas.
Measures will be taken to improve the quality and efficiency of rural industries, develop local specialties, cultivate new industries and business models, perfect mechanisms linking farmers to ag enterprises and increase farmers' income.
Improving the planning and construction level of rural areas will align with population changes, integrating rural revitalisation with new urbanisation. Related measures include coordinating county-level urban and rural planning, extending infrastructure to rural areas, raising the level of basic public services in rural areas, improving the rural living environment and enhancing rural ecological environment governance.
Efforts will be made to strengthen the rural governance system, promoting party building and rectifying formalism to reduce burdens on the grassroots level.
All tasks related to further deepening rural reforms must be fully implemented, including orderly advancing pilot programs for extending land contracts for another 30 years after the second round expires, exploring effective forms for utilising idle farmhouses through methods such as leasing, equity participation and cooperation and innovating financing and investment mechanisms for rural revitalisation.