Page 164 - 2017 White Paper
P. 164
7 White Paper on the Business Environment in China
2.1 Agriculture
Introduction of 192 million tons, a 58.9 percent increase from a decade
ago” (China Daily 2012a; China Daily 2012b).
China’s agricultural industry has a long
and varied history. According Challenges and Development
to the Ministry of Land and Resources of the People’s
Republic of China, 14 percent of the country’s total 9.6 Major Concerns
million square kilometers of land area is arable, which
it further reports is less than half of the world average Despite the growing robustness of domestic
in terms of area per capita (The Ministry of Land and agriculture, however, several issues remain major
Resources of the People’s Republic of China 2007). concerns moving forward.
Despite the relatively small area, it generally supports For one, a study conducted by the Chinese Academy
the roughly 20 percent of the world’s population who of Sciences found that “the agricultural sector is a drag
are Chinese citizens. This fact, in addition to historical on the development of China’s modernization, with
precedents, continues to highlight the need for efficient its technological level by the end of 2008 more than a
use of the limited space and of the constant interplay century behind that of the United States” (Zhou 2012). In
between ongoing industrialization and the necessity of terms of productivity, the Academy found that Chinese
a strong fundamental primary industry. It is estimated agricultural efforts were only one percent as productive
that the Chinese government has, in the past several as those in Western nations; furthermore, the report
decades, spent “hundreds of billions of dollars to repair concluded that bringing productivity up to international
and revitalize” agriculture (AFP 2008). norms will necessitate the creation of “jobs for 280 mil-
lion farmers, cutting the rural workforce population from
Since China joined the WTO in 2001, the Chinese 310 million to 31 million over the next 40 years” as part of
government has steadily supported agricultural modernization efforts (Ibid.). In other words, the situation
expenditure and development. The Ministry of Finance is far from ideal in absolute terms regardless of impressive
later reported that in 2011, China’s grain growers were relative gains made in recent years.
to receive a total of 140.6 billion yuan in subsidies for
purchasing agricultural supplies and machinery as well Another issue seems to be enforcement of policies
as for growing a more diverse selection of crops (Xinhua currently on the books. In August of 2012, a series of
2004). “inspections” was announced which intended, according
to NPC Standing Committee Chair Wu Bangguo, to “find
These efforts have paid off handsomely. A more recent out the prominent issues that hamper China’s rural reform
report by the National Bureau of Statistics indicated that and development and providing suggestions to promote
between 2002 and 2011,“average rural incomes surged by the agricultural modernization” (China Daily 2012a; China
1.8 times compared with 2002 to 6,977 yuan (US$1,090) Daily 2012b).
in 2011”. Simultaneously, the report announced ongoing
increases in several areas: “grain production reached 571 Inspections aside, the same NPC Standing Committee
million tons, an increase of 114 million tons from 2002, an member also pointed out that “China [is] facing a series
annual increase rate of 2.5 percent over the last decade”, of challenges in rural development, including weak grain
“rice yields in 2011 stood at 201 million tons, a 15.2 productivity, lack of a long-term system for raising the
percent increase from 2002”, “wheat production reached farmers’ income, and shortage of farmland and water
117 billion tons, up 30 percent”and“corn obtained a yield
164
2.1 Agriculture
Introduction of 192 million tons, a 58.9 percent increase from a decade
ago” (China Daily 2012a; China Daily 2012b).
China’s agricultural industry has a long
and varied history. According Challenges and Development
to the Ministry of Land and Resources of the People’s
Republic of China, 14 percent of the country’s total 9.6 Major Concerns
million square kilometers of land area is arable, which
it further reports is less than half of the world average Despite the growing robustness of domestic
in terms of area per capita (The Ministry of Land and agriculture, however, several issues remain major
Resources of the People’s Republic of China 2007). concerns moving forward.
Despite the relatively small area, it generally supports For one, a study conducted by the Chinese Academy
the roughly 20 percent of the world’s population who of Sciences found that “the agricultural sector is a drag
are Chinese citizens. This fact, in addition to historical on the development of China’s modernization, with
precedents, continues to highlight the need for efficient its technological level by the end of 2008 more than a
use of the limited space and of the constant interplay century behind that of the United States” (Zhou 2012). In
between ongoing industrialization and the necessity of terms of productivity, the Academy found that Chinese
a strong fundamental primary industry. It is estimated agricultural efforts were only one percent as productive
that the Chinese government has, in the past several as those in Western nations; furthermore, the report
decades, spent “hundreds of billions of dollars to repair concluded that bringing productivity up to international
and revitalize” agriculture (AFP 2008). norms will necessitate the creation of “jobs for 280 mil-
lion farmers, cutting the rural workforce population from
Since China joined the WTO in 2001, the Chinese 310 million to 31 million over the next 40 years” as part of
government has steadily supported agricultural modernization efforts (Ibid.). In other words, the situation
expenditure and development. The Ministry of Finance is far from ideal in absolute terms regardless of impressive
later reported that in 2011, China’s grain growers were relative gains made in recent years.
to receive a total of 140.6 billion yuan in subsidies for
purchasing agricultural supplies and machinery as well Another issue seems to be enforcement of policies
as for growing a more diverse selection of crops (Xinhua currently on the books. In August of 2012, a series of
2004). “inspections” was announced which intended, according
to NPC Standing Committee Chair Wu Bangguo, to “find
These efforts have paid off handsomely. A more recent out the prominent issues that hamper China’s rural reform
report by the National Bureau of Statistics indicated that and development and providing suggestions to promote
between 2002 and 2011,“average rural incomes surged by the agricultural modernization” (China Daily 2012a; China
1.8 times compared with 2002 to 6,977 yuan (US$1,090) Daily 2012b).
in 2011”. Simultaneously, the report announced ongoing
increases in several areas: “grain production reached 571 Inspections aside, the same NPC Standing Committee
million tons, an increase of 114 million tons from 2002, an member also pointed out that “China [is] facing a series
annual increase rate of 2.5 percent over the last decade”, of challenges in rural development, including weak grain
“rice yields in 2011 stood at 201 million tons, a 15.2 productivity, lack of a long-term system for raising the
percent increase from 2002”, “wheat production reached farmers’ income, and shortage of farmland and water
117 billion tons, up 30 percent”and“corn obtained a yield
164
