Wei Houkai: The Fundamental Compliance for Promoting Integrated Urban-Rural Development in the New Era
Urban-rural integrated development is an essential requirement of Chinese-path modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping has always attached great importance to urban-rural integrated development and has made a series of important expositions. These profoundly reveal the trends and laws of urban-rural change and scientifically clarify the goals, directions, and practical paths of urban-rural integrated development. As an important constituent of Xi Jinping Economic Thought, the General Secretary's important expositions on urban-rural integrated development are rich in content and complete in system. They innovatively develop the Marxist theory of urban-rural relations, possess distinct innovativeness and timeliness, and serve as the fundamental guidance for advancing urban-rural integrated development in the New Era, pointing out the correct direction for exploring a road of urban-rural integrated development with Chinese characteristics.
Profoundly Revealing the Trends of Urban-Rural Change and Laws of Development
Cities are regional spatial forms where population and non-agricultural industries aggregate to a certain scale, while the countryside refers to a regional complex outside of urban built-up areas that possesses natural, social, and economic characteristics and performs multiple functions such as production, living, ecology, and culture. As two different types of regional complexes, the evolution and development of cities and the countryside have their own inherent laws. To advance urban-rural integrated development, one must scientifically grasp the trends of urban-rural evolution and recognize, respect, and adapt to the laws of urban-rural evolution and development. In his expositions on urban-rural integrated development and the development of cities and the countryside, General Secretary Xi Jinping attaches great importance to respecting objective laws, profoundly revealing the trends of urban-rural evolution and development laws from three aspects.
First, profoundly revealing the trend of shifting developmental stages. Imbalanced urban-rural development is a problem universally faced by developing countries. China is a developing country where the problem of urban-rural development imbalance is relatively prominent; this imbalance was formed through the combined effects of multiple factors over a long historical process. To fundamentally resolve this imbalance, it is necessary to advance urban-rural developmental integration and pay greater attention to rural development. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that advancing urban-rural developmental integration is an inevitable requirement when industrialization, urbanization, and agricultural modernization reach a certain stage, and is an important hallmark of national modernization. From the perspective of international experience, as economies and societies develop, countries generally undergo a major transition from dualistic segmentation [1] to urban-rural integration. The Fifth Plenary Session of the 16th CPC Central Committee proposed implementing the practice of industry nurturing agriculture and cities supporting the countryside, and the 18th National Congress further established the promotion of urban-rural developmental integration as a major task.
In 2015, while presiding over the 22nd collective study session of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping made the important judgment that China "possesses the material and technical conditions to support urban-rural developmental integration and has reached the developmental stage where industry nurtures agriculture and cities support the countryside." This judgment aligns with global urban-rural development trends and China’s developmental reality, laying the foundation for the transformation of China’s urban-rural development policy. Following sustained and rapid development since the Reform and Opening-up, by 2014, China's GRP per capita reached approximately $7,500, the urbanization rate was 54.77%, and comprehensive national strength and government fiscal capacity had significantly increased. National general public budget revenue stepped up to the 14 trillion yuan level, the scale of manufacturing ranked first in the world, and positive results were achieved in agricultural and rural reform and development. The material, organizational, and institutional conditions for advancing urban-rural developmental integration were already in place.
Second, profoundly revealing the laws governing the evolution of urban-rural relations. As urbanization continues to advance, the rural population and non-agricultural industries will continuously aggregate toward towns and cities. The proportions of rural population, employment, and total economic output will gradually decline, while the proportions accounted for by urban areas will gradually rise. At the same time, because cities and the countryside have different functional positionings, their functions complement each other, promote each other, and coexist in symbiosis. However, in previous academic research and practical explorations, this symbiotic relationship was often neglected, to the extent that some people ignored or forgot the countryside based solely on the trend of "urban rise and rural decline." General Secretary Xi Jinping attaches great importance to urban-rural development issues and has systematically summarized the laws governing the evolution of urban-rural relations. In 2018, during the eighth collective study session of the Political Bureau of the 19th CPC Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping explicitly pointed out: "In the process of modernization, the rising proportion of cities and the declining proportion of the countryside is an objective law. However, under our national condition of nearly 1.4 billion people, no matter what stage industrialization and urbanization reach, agriculture must develop and the countryside will not vanish; the city and the countryside will coexist in symbiosis over the long term—this is also an objective law." This comprehensive and systematic summary fully embodies Marxist dialectical thinking, helping to scientifically recognize and comprehensively grasp the laws of urban-rural evolution and eliminate certain cognitive misconceptions in people's minds. It must be recognized that the rural areas bear the heavy responsibility of ensuring food security, ecological security, and the stable supply of agricultural products. Rural stability is the foundation of social stability; comprehensive rural revitalization is the key to national rejuvenation. One must never look down upon or even negate the importance of the countryside simply because its proportion is declining. As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, "At no time can we neglect agriculture, forget the farmers, or become indifferent to the countryside."
Third, profoundly revealing the laws of urban and rural development. Both cities and the countryside have their own laws of development. To advance urban-rural integrated development, one must follow the laws of urban development and rural development; one cannot simply copy urban methods to advance rural development and construction. However, up to now, people's understanding of urban and rural development laws is still not deep enough, and some cognitive misconceptions remain, affecting urban and rural development and construction. At the Central Urban Work Conference held at the end of 2015, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized the need to recognize, respect, and adapt to the laws of urban development, and summarized several major laws of urban development. Specifically: urban and economic development complement and promote each other; urban development is a process where the rural population aggregates in cities and agricultural land is converted to urban construction land according to a corresponding scale; and the scale of a city must be compatible with the carrying capacity of its resources and environment. This scientific summary helps us correctly recognize and systematically grasp the laws of urban development, correct erroneous understandings and unscientific practices in the urban development and construction of some localities, and provides the theoretical guidance for doing urban work well in the New Era. Rural construction must similarly follow the laws of urban-rural development and construction. At the Central Rural Work Conference held at the end of 2013, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "As the economy and society develop, some villages will aggregate more population, and some natural villages will gradually vanish; this conforms to the law of village evolution and development." Following this law of development requires optimizing village layouts to adapt to the trends of urban-rural population change, rather than misunderstanding the disappearance of some villages during the urbanization process as the disappearance or decline of the "countryside" as a whole. Along with the in-depth advancement of urbanization, the rural population and the number of villages will continue to decrease; this is a universal trend in the evolution of urban-rural patterns across all countries during the stage of rapid urbanization.
Scientifically Clarifying the Goals and Direction of Urban-Rural Integrated Development
Since the beginning of the new century, the conceptual expression of China's urban-rural development policy has undergone changes. The report of the 16th National Congress proposed the overall planning of urban and rural economic and social development [2]. The report of the 17th National Congress proposed the integration of urban and rural economic and social development. The report of the 18th National Congress proposed urban-rural developmental integration. The reports of the 19th and 20th National Congresses emphasized "urban-rural integrated development." From "overall planning" to "developmental integration" and then to "integrated development," this reflects both the developmental continuity of central policy and its quality of advancing with the times to adapt to new situations. "Overall planning" (tǒngchóu) highlights the coordinating role of the government, but relying solely on government planning makes it difficult to achieve full integration; the role of market mechanisms must also be better utilized. "Urban-rural developmental integration" emphasizes the goal of being a single entity, while "urban-rural integrated development" emphasizes two-way fusion, interaction, and the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits. The two are consistent in their developmental concepts and goal orientations. Overall, "urban-rural integrated development" is a broader concept with a more inclusive connotation, capable of covering all aspects of overall planning and developmental integration. General Secretary Xi Jinping always keeps the people in the highest position in his heart. In a series of important expositions, he has scientifically clarified the goal system and the primary direction of urban-rural integrated development, focusing on comprehensively improving the level of integration.
First, it embodies the people-centered development philosophy. Urban-rural integrated development is a powerful tool for resolving the imbalance between urban and rural areas. Its value orientation is to persist in being people-centered, allowing the broad masses of people to share the fruits of reform and development, and achieving the free and comprehensive development of individuals. To advance urban-rural integrated development is to gradually narrow the urban-rural gap and achieve universal prosperity and common prosperity for both urban and rural areas through the sharing of resources, developmental opportunities, public services, and results, all on the basis of maintaining urban-rural openness and equality of status. This shared urban-rural development not only embodies the essential requirements of socialism with Chinese characteristics but is also an important characteristic of urban-rural integrated development. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the need to "let the broad masses of farmers participate equally in the process of reform and development and share the fruits of reform and development together," and proposed "making industry nurturing agriculture and cities supporting the countryside a long-term policy," fully embodying the people-centered development philosophy and the requirements for achieving common prosperity.
Second, establishing a goal system for urban-rural integrated development. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that the goal of advancing urban-rural developmental integration "is to gradually achieve the equalization of basic rights and interests for urban and rural residents, the equalization of urban and rural public services, the balance of urban and rural resident incomes, the rationalization of urban and rural factor allocation, and the integration of urban and rural industrial development." These "five goals of modernization" cover the fields of basic rights, public services, resident income, factor allocation, and industrial development, constituting a complete and scientific goal system. Although this goal system was proposed for "urban-rural developmental integration," it is equally applicable to advancing "urban-rural integrated development." Among the "five goals," the equalization of basic rights and interests for urban and rural residents places the city and the countryside on equal footing, granting residents equal basic rights, including political rights, the right to education, the right to employment, property rights, and social security interests; this is the foundation and prerequisite for achieving urban-rural integrated development. The current focus is on accelerating the "urbanization" (shìmínhuà) of the migrant agricultural population, guaranteeing equal employment rights for urban and rural laborers, while granting farmers more adequate property rights and promoting the equal exchange of urban and rural factors. The equalization of (basic) urban-rural public services means that urban and rural residents can fairly and accessibly obtain roughly equal basic public services; this is an internal requirement for achieving urban-rural integrated development and enhancing people’s wellbeing. The current focus is on shoring up the weaknesses in rural public services, improving supply quality and convenience, and achieving high-quality and balanced basic public services. The balancing of urban and rural resident incomes is a long-term process in which incomes gradually converge; it is the core content of urban-rural integrated development and a key indicator for measuring the degree of integration and common prosperity. Narrowing the income gap highlights the need to increase farmers’ income and promote its sustained and stable growth. The rationalization of urban and rural factor allocation is an important feature of urban-rural integrated development, requiring the combined forces of the government and the market. The current focus is on eliminating various institutional barriers, promoting the two-way flow and optimal configuration of urban and rural factors, and improving allocation efficiency. The integration of urban and rural industrial development is both the basic trend of urban-rural integrated development and an effective path to advance comprehensive rural revitalization. The current focus is on fully tapping the multiple functions of agriculture and the diverse values of the countryside, promoting the deep integration and transformation of the entire urban-rural industrial chain.
Third, clarifying the primary direction of urban-rural integrated development. Urban-rural integration is a multi-level, multi-field, and comprehensive concept involving multiple dimensions, various fields, and the entire process of urban-rural development. From the developmental dimension, urban-rural integration includes the integration of factors, industries, space, institutions, and policies. It requires not only promoting the integration of factors, industries, and space but also promoting the integration of development institutions and policies. From the field of development, urban-rural integration includes economic, social, and cultural integration; it is the concrete manifestation of the "Five-Sphere Integrated Plan" in urban-rural integrated development. From the developmental process, urban-rural integration includes the integration of planning, construction, and governance, running through the entire process. At the current stage, advancing urban-rural integrated development must highlight key points and clarify the primary direction. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out the need to "promote mutual integration and common development of urban and rural areas in terms of planning layouts, factor allocation, industrial development, public services, and ecological protection," thereby clarifying the primary direction for advancing urban-rural integrated development.
Fourth, focusing on comprehensively improving the level of urban-rural integration. In practice, urban-rural integrated development is a gradual process moving from a low-to-medium level to a high level. Currently, China’s economy has transitioned from a stage of high-speed growth to a stage of high-quality development, and high-quality development has become an important goal for urban-rural development across all regions. Under the new situation, what we pursue is a high-quality, comprehensive, and sustainable high-level urban-rural integrated development. As early as...
In 2015, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed that we should "gradually realize a high-level integration of urban and rural development" and pointed out the need to "strive to form a new pattern of integrated urban-rural development." In recent years, he has further emphasized the construction of a new pattern of urban-rural integrated development. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee explicitly proposed to "comprehensively improve the level of integration in urban-rural planning, construction, and governance." All of these ideas fully embody the logic of high-quality urban-rural integrated development. Of course, achieving such high-level integration will be a long-term, incremental process that requires orderly advancement through distinct stages.
Systematically Planning the Practical Path of Urban-Rural Integrated Development
In recent years, China’s urban-rural integrated development has advanced rapidly and achieved significant phased results. However, viewed holistically, the gap between urban and rural development remains large, and the level of integrated development still needs improvement. The institutional mechanisms of urban-rural segregation formed over a long period in the past have not yet been fundamentally eliminated. Building a new pattern of high-level urban-rural integrated development that meets the requirements of the common prosperity goal remains a task for which the "burden is heavy and the road is long" [3]. In advancing urban-rural integrated development, we must persist in proceeding from national conditions. We must both follow general laws and highlight our own characteristics as we walk the path of urban-rural integrated development.
First, promote strategic coordination and bidirectional integration. Implementing strategic coordination is an important measure for promoting urban-rural integrated development in the New Era. As early as the Central Economic Work Conference held at the end of 2017, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that we must "conform to the major trend of urban-rural integrated development and persist in grasping both new-type urbanization and rural revitalization." In essence, persisting in "grasping both" emphasizes the coordination of these two major strategies. Subsequently, in December 2023, a Central meeting emphasized the need to "coordinate new-type urbanization and comprehensive rural revitalization." The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee further proposed that we "must coordinate new-type industrialization, new-type urbanization, and comprehensive rural revitalization," thereby incorporating new-type industrialization into the strategic coordination. Implementing this three-way coordination means organically combining new-type industrialization, new-type urbanization, and comprehensive rural revitalization. It involves strengthening the coordination and linkage of their strategic goals, planning designs, implementation mechanisms, and policy tools to fully exert strategic synergies and mutual support. This will form a powerful force, using strategic coordination to drive the formation of a new pattern of high-level urban-rural integrated development.
Urban-rural integrated development is a process of co-construction, sharing, and co-prosperity achieved through urban-rural openness and fusion. Promoting new-type urbanization and comprehensive rural revitalization requires integrating the concept of urban-rural integrated development into them. At the Central Rural Work Conference held at the end of 2017, General Secretary Xi Jinping explicitly proposed to reshape urban-rural relations and take the path of urban-rural integrated development; in 2018, he emphasized that "to do well in the great endeavor of the rural revitalization strategy, we must take the path of urban-rural integrated development." When discussing urbanization and urban development, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that "urbanization is a process of coordinated urban-rural development" and "without rural development, urbanization will lack its foundation." Following this guidance, China's urbanization must develop in synchronization with agricultural modernization, and urban work must be promoted alongside "San Nong" [4] work. This perspective views comprehensive rural revitalization and the urbanization process from the angle of urban-rural integration and coordinated development, breaking through traditional urban-rural dualistic opposition and moving beyond the logic of discussing the city in isolation or the countryside in isolation. This provides a new path for promoting new-type urbanization and comprehensive rural revitalization.
Second, improve institutional mechanisms and policy systems. Innovation in institutional mechanisms is the key driving force for pushing urban-rural integrated development. Currently, there is an urgent need to break down the obstacles of the urban-rural dual system, accelerate innovation in institutional mechanisms, and improve relevant policy systems to advance urban-rural integrated development to a higher level through reform and innovation. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, "We must persist in taking reform as the driving force to continuously resolve the urban-rural dual structure" and "look to reform for momentum, accelerating the establishment and improvement of institutional mechanisms and policy systems for urban-rural integrated development." In this process, systematic deployments must be made regarding planning layouts, factor mobility, infrastructure, public services, educational development, and social security, clarifying the goals and measures for deepening reform in each field. Regarding planning layouts, we must strengthen top-level design and systematic planning, improve the planning system, and consider the formulation of urban and rural development plans as a whole, with integrated design and "multiple plans into one" [5]. Regarding factor mobility, we must break down institutional barriers that hinder the equal exchange and bidirectional flow of urban and rural factors, promoting the flow of talent, capital, and technology to the countryside, and encouraging the orderly mobility of the rural population and the orderly clustering of industries to form a development mechanism of urban-rural interaction and a virtuous cycle. Regarding infrastructure, we should promote the interconnectivity and co-construction of urban and rural infrastructure, innovate mechanisms for decision-making, investment, construction, operation, and maintenance of rural infrastructure and public service facilities, and encourage wide participation from social capital to gradually establish an infrastructure service network with full territorial coverage, universal sharing, and urban-rural integration. Regarding public services, we should accelerate the extension of public services to the countryside, improve the institutional mechanisms for the equalization of basic urban and rural public services, and gradually establish a basic public service system characterized by universal coverage, inclusive sharing, and urban-rural integration. Regarding educational development, priority should be given to rural education, accelerating the establishment of an obligatory education development mechanism where the city leads the countryside in a holistic, integrated, and balanced manner. Regarding social security, we must improve a multi-level social security system that covers the entire population, coordinates urban and rural areas, is fair and unified, and is sustainable.
Third, take the county level as the important entry point. The county-level economy is the basic unit of the national economy and occupies an important position in the national economic system. The county is also the hub for the flow and allocation of urban-rural resources and factors. Overall, China's counties account for about 90% of the national land area and over 50% of the population; they are the areas where urban-rural links are closest, providing a solid foundation for taking the lead in realizing urban-rural integrated development. At the Central Rural Work Conference held at the end of 2020, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that the county should be taken as the important entry point for urban-rural integrated development, promoting county-level coordination in spatial layout, industrial development, and infrastructure, so as to arrange and handle urban-rural relations well, designing and advancing them as one. Subsequently, on various occasions, he proposed the requirements to "be the first to break the urban-rural dual structure within the county" and "be the first to realize urban-rural integrated development within the county." Taking the county as the important entry point is determined by the geographic scope and basic characteristics of the county unit. The size of a county is generally moderate, the urban-rural links are relatively close, the commuting distances and transaction radii are small, and the costs of integration and migration are low, making it an effective geographic unit for promoting urban-rural integrated development at the current stage. Meanwhile, the urban-rural gap within the county is relatively small, integration is relatively easy, and conditions are ripe to be the first to break the urban-rural dual structure and achieve urban-rural integrated development. Only by realizing urban-rural integrated development within the county can we create conditions for achieving integration at a higher level. As the level of economic and social development improves, the level of coordination for urban-rural integrated development will gradually rise, and the coordinated geographic scope will continuously expand. Various regions should proceed from their own realities and promote urban-rural integrated development according to local conditions. For example, in economically developed areas like the Yangtze River Delta or the Pearl River Delta, coordination within the scope of prefecture-level cities can be considered; for some large cities with a permanent urban population of over 3 million, integrated urban-rural development can be pursued within the metropolitan area, moving toward "conurbation" [6].
Innovating and Developing the Marxist Theory of Urban-Rural Relations
General Secretary Xi Jinping's important expositions on urban-rural integrated development possess profound theoretical origins and a realistic basis. They systematically answer major theoretical and practical questions in China's urban-rural integrated development, innovate and develop the Marxist theory of urban-rural relations, and lay the ideological foundation for reshaping urban-rural relations in the New Era.
First, it innovates and develops the theory of the urban-rural community. Marx and Engels revealed the laws of the evolution of urban-rural relations from the perspective of the development of productive forces and the social division of labor. They believed that urban-rural integration is the advanced stage of urban-rural relations and emphasized that "the abolition of the antagonism between town and country is one of the first conditions of communal life." Comrade Mao Zedong, in discussing urban-rural relations, emphasized that "both the city and the countryside must be taken into account" and that urban work and rural work must be closely linked. Comrade Deng Xiaoping emphasized the interaction between the two, pointing out that "the countryside and the city influence and promote each other in this way." General Secretary Xi Jinping, from the perspective of urban-rural symbiosis, emphasized that "industry and agriculture, city and countryside, must be planned as a whole" and that "cities and villages promote each other and coexist symbiotically." This not only innovates and develops the theory of the urban-rural community but also provides important support for constructing a new type of industrial-agricultural and urban-rural relationship. It must be seen that this organic whole of mutual promotion and symbiosis is, in essence, an urban-rural community. In an urban-rural community, equality, openness, and complementarity between city and country are the objective foundations and prerequisites; mutual promotion, symbiosis, co-construction, and sharing are basic characteristics; and common prosperity for both city and country is the development goal. It must be recognized that without urban-rural equality, openness, and complementarity, mutual promotion, symbiosis, and sharing would be out of the question, and the goal of common prosperity would be difficult to achieve. The urban-rural community is both a community of interests and a community of development. In recent years, China has actively promoted the construction of communities in education, healthcare, culture, governance, and ecology, which are vivid practices of the urban-rural development community in various fields.
Second, it proposes a vision for a new type of industrial-agricultural and urban-rural relationship. In a sense, urban-rural integrated development is the advanced stage of the evolution of urban-rural relations. As development stages and conditions change, urban-rural relations will also change. General Secretary Xi Jinping attaches great importance to reshaping urban-rural relations and has proposed new requirements for building a new type of relationship based on changing circumstances. In 2013, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed the formation of a "new type of industrial-agricultural and urban-rural relationship in which industry promotes agriculture, the city leads the countryside, industry and agriculture benefit each other, and city and country are integrated," reflecting the requirements for promoting the integration of urban and rural development. At the end of 2017, from the perspective of urban-rural integrated development, General Secretary Xi Jinping made a new generalization of this relationship, proposing "to persist in using industry to support agriculture and the city to lead the countryside, and to promote the formation of a new type of industrial-agricultural and urban-rural relationship characterized by mutual promotion between industry and agriculture, complementarity between city and country, total integration, and common prosperity." Here, using industry to support agriculture and the city to lead the countryside are principles that must be maintained over the long term, echoing the policy requirement of prioritizing the development of agriculture and rural areas. Mutual promotion and complementarity reflect the reciprocal nature of the relationship, total integration reflects the basic characteristic of integrated development, and common prosperity reflects the goal and the requirements of the common prosperity agenda. Common prosperity entails universal prosperity for both cities and villages; we must "construct both flourishing cities and prosperous villages." In 2020, according to the new situation, the Central authorities further proposed to "strengthen the support of agriculture by industry and the leading of the countryside by the city, and promote the formation of a new type of industrial-agricultural and urban-rural relationship characterized by mutual promotion, complementarity, coordinated development, and common prosperity." Here, "total integration" was adjusted to "coordinated development." This change in wording is more consistent with the requirements of the New Development Philosophy and reflects a gradual deepening of understanding. Integration is only a means and path of development, while coordination is both a means and a goal. Coordinated development places greater emphasis on fairness of opportunity and balanced resource allocation, which aligns with the goal-oriented pursuit of common prosperity. In short, the vision for a new type of industrial-agricultural and urban-rural relationship advances with the times, clarifying the focus for promoting urban-rural integrated development in the New Era and the basic direction for reshaping urban-rural relations. It is a major innovation with both theoretical and practical significance.
(The author is a specially invited researcher at the CASS Research Center for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and a Member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.)