Ye Xingqing: Promoting Agricultural and Rural Modernization with Innovation Accomplishments in Poverty Alleviation
Through eight years of struggle in the battle against poverty, China completely eliminated absolute poverty by the end of 2020. During the subsequent five-year transition period, the achievements of poverty alleviation have been continuously consolidated and expanded, and our country has firmly held the bottom line of preventing any large-scale return to poverty. The year 2026 marks the start of the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, making the successful execution of "Three Rural" [1] work crucially important. General Secretary Xi Jinping has issued important instructions, emphasizing the need to "anchor [our efforts] to Chinese-path modernization in agriculture and rural areas, solidly promote the comprehensive revitalization of the countryside, and push forward integrated urban-rural development," and to "continuously consolidate and expand the achievements of poverty alleviation, integrate normalized assistance into the overall implementation of the rural revitalization strategy, and strictly guard the bottom line of preventing a large-scale return to poverty." Entering the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, we must profoundly understand the significance of winning the battle against poverty and guarding against a large-scale return to it. We must deeply summarize the practical innovations achieved during this great historical process to provide guidance for continuing the advancement of Chinese-path modernization in agriculture and rural areas on the new journey.
Profoundly Understanding Historical Significance and Global Value
Winning the battle against poverty and eliminating absolute poverty are landmark events in the developmental history of the Chinese nation. Restricted by factors such as the level of productive forces, the broad masses of laboring people remained in poverty for a long time, struggling for thousands of years to escape its grasp. After the founding of New China, the Communist Party of China united and led the people in a hard struggle to create a better life, promoting the rapid development of social productive forces and realizing a quick improvement in material and cultural living standards. Despite this, by the end of 2012, there were still 98.99 million rural poor under the current poverty line, with a poverty incidence rate of 10.2%. This became the greatest short board [2] in achieving the First Centenary Goal. In response, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core placed poverty alleviation in a prominent position in state governance and as a bottom-line task for the comprehensive buildup of a moderately prosperous society. They organized and implemented a battle against poverty that was unprecedented in human history in terms of scale, intensity, and the number of people benefited.
After eight years of struggle, by the end of 2020, all 98.99 million rural poor under the current standard were lifted out of poverty, all 832 poverty-stricken counties "removed their hats" [3], and all 128,000 poverty-stricken villages were removed from the list. Regional poverty as a whole was resolved, completing the arduous task of eliminating absolute poverty. After winning the battle, the CPC Central Committee established a five-year transition period to consolidate and expand the results. Since the "14th Five-Year Plan," more than 7 million monitored individuals nationwide have been identified and assisted to stably eliminate the risk of returning to poverty, and the scale of employment for the population lifted out of poverty has remained stable at over 30 million people. By winning this battle and preventing a large-scale return to poverty, the Chinese nation has, for the first time in its several-thousand-year history, eliminated absolute poverty in its entirety, realizing a thousand-year dream and a century-old aspiration.
China’s victory in the battle against poverty stands in sharp contrast to the difficult and tortuous trend of global poverty reduction. In September 2015, the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by 193 member states, identified "ending poverty in all its forms everywhere" as the primary goal. China increased its efforts to implement this agenda, won the battle against poverty in 2020, and achieved the poverty reduction goal 10 years ahead of schedule. According to a World Bank report, based on the standard of living on $2.15 per person per day (2017 purchasing power parity), the global extreme poor population and poverty rate in 2024 will still be approximately 692 million and 8.5%, respectively. If current trends continue, the global poverty rate is expected to be 7.3% in 2030, failing to meet the goal set by the UN 2030 Agenda. Against a backdrop of slow global progress and even an increase in the poor population in some countries, China has created a "Chinese model" for poverty governance, making a major contribution to the global cause of poverty reduction.
Great Practice Creates Rich Empirical Results
Winning the battle against poverty and eliminating absolute poverty has not only brought about historic changes in the socio-economic face of the population and areas lifted out of poverty but has also formed an anti-poverty theory with Chinese characteristics. It has yielded practical experience in gradually narrowing urban-rural and regional development gaps and promoting common prosperity during the modernization process.
Persisting in anchoring goals and advancing precisely in stages and steps. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Determining developmental goals in accordance with the laws of socio-economic development, and unswervingly anchoring those goals through united struggle, is a prominent feature and unique advantage of our Party." This is how China's modernization undertaking is advanced, and how the elimination of absolute poverty was realized. In the early stages of Reform and Opening-up, the base of the rural poor population was large. In 1986, the poverty line was first set at an annual per capita net income of 206 yuan, corresponding to 125 million poor people. The "National Seven-Year Priority Poverty Alleviation Program (1994–2000)" [4] proposed striving to basically solve the food and clothing problems of the 80 million rural poor over the roughly seven years from 1994 to 2000. Entering the 21st century, in response to new characteristics of the poverty problem, the poverty line was raised in 2001 to 865 yuan, corresponding to 94.228 million people. The "Outline for Development-oriented Poverty Alleviation in China's Rural Areas (2001–2010)" proposed further improving basic production and living conditions and the comprehensive quality of the poor population. Addressing deeper reasons behind poverty, the 2011 standard was raised to 2,300 yuan, covering 122 million people. The 2011–2020 version of the "Outline" proposed stage-specific goals such as "two assurances and three guarantees" [5]. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has taken the lifting of all poor people out of poverty as a bottom-line task and a landmark indicator for achieving the First Centenary Goal. They creatively proposed the concepts of "seeking truth from facts, acting according to local conditions, providing classified guidance, and targeted poverty alleviation," and organized the implementation of the battle against poverty. Practice has shown that by setting goals according to a step-by-step, progressive approach, while implementing precise measures, we can consolidate strength, boost morale, and move toward victory.
Persisting in exerting the regulatory role of redistribution. China gives full play to the decisive role of the market in resource allocation to drive economic development and increase residents' income; most of the poor escaped poverty through industrialization and urbanization. However, due to geographical conditions, resource endowments, and historical/cultural factors, some groups and regions were unable to fully participate in the economic development process. To help them catch up, it is necessary both to promote the gradient transfer of industries to underdeveloped areas to enhance their "blood-making" [6] capacity and to import resources from the outside to provide support. During the battle against poverty, central and local fiscal special funds for poverty alleviation totaled nearly 1.6 trillion yuan, with the central government contributing 660.1 billion yuan. Nine eastern provinces and cities provided over 100.5 billion yuan in fiscal aid and social assistance to their partner regions; eastern enterprises invested over 1 trillion yuan in these regions. During the transition period, vertical and horizontal fiscal transfers, credit provision, and social donations continued to increase; the central fiscal "linkage funds" for rural revitalization alone reached 850.5 billion yuan. Such intensive investment has played a huge role in promoting coordinated urban-rural and regional development. Practice shows that as long as a goal is elevated to the level of national will, national strategy, and national action, we can concentrate our strengths to accomplish great tasks like eliminating absolute poverty.
Persisting in the close integration of investment in things (material) and investment in people. Promoting the better development of low-income populations and underdeveloped areas requires not only focusing on "investing in things"—building infrastructure and developing industrial projects—but also "investing in people"—helping them obtain basic public services and enhancing human capital. In terms of investing in things, we actively promoted the construction of transportation networks, water conservancy, electricity, and communications in poor areas. During the battle, over 300,000 industrial bases and 12,000 specialized agricultural brands were created. In terms of investing in people, we continuously improved school facilities, teacher supplies, and financial aid. Over 200,000 dropouts from poor families returned to school, 8 million graduates received vocational training, and 514,000 students from poor families received higher education. We implemented the "health poverty alleviation project" to prevent illness from causing a return to poverty. We promoted "employment poverty alleviation" through vocational training and labor export partnerships between the East and West. We also increased "bottom-line guarantees," raising the rural minimum subsistence allowance (dibao) from 2,068 yuan in 2012 to 7,128 yuan in 2024. We emphasized combining poverty alleviation with the "strengthening of will and intellect" [7], enriching both the "pocket" and the "head." Practice shows that investing in things creates basic conditions, while investing in people stimulates endogenous drive.
Persisting in the realization of ecosystem product value according to local conditions. Poverty-stricken areas often possess rich ecological resources but fragile environments. This presents a risk for traditional development but a unique advantage for practicing the concept that "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets" [8]. Therefore, "poverty alleviation through ecological compensation" became a key measure. We increased transfers to key ecological functional zones and hired poor residents as forest rangers. This turned ecological resource use into a competitive advantage. Practice shows that by shifting developmental thinking, disadvantages can become advantages, achieving both "greenery" and "income."
Persisting in the coordination of village and town layouts according to objective laws. In an era of self-sufficiency, village layouts were based on proximity to resources and defense. As populations grew, some areas fell into "low-level equilibrium traps." With industrialization, these layouts became obstacles to market exchange and costly for infrastructure. In response, "poverty alleviation through relocation" (e-di-ban-qian) became a key measure. We built 35,000 concentrated resettlement areas, moving 9.6 million people from places where "one plot of land and water cannot support its people." This scale of relocation changed the rural layout and accelerated urbanization. Practice shows we must follow the underlying logic of population distribution to improve efficiency.
Providing Reference for Advancing Chinese-path Modernization in Agriculture and Rural Areas
Without the modernization of agriculture and rural areas, there can be no modernization of the country as a whole. During the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, to better advance Chinese-path modernization by accelerating rural modernization, we must fully utilize the empirical results of the battle against poverty to push rural revitalization to new heights.
We must anchor the general goal of agricultural and rural modernization and proceed in stages and steps.
The general goal of work concerning "agriculture, rural areas, and farmers" is to achieve the modernization of agriculture and rural areas; the general grasp is to promote the comprehensive revitalization of the countryside; and the general principle is to adhere to the prioritized development of agriculture and rural areas. Between now and the middle of this century, there remain five Five-Year Plan periods. We should follow a step-by-step progression, rooted in the overall progress of Chinese-path modernization, to scientifically determine the stage-by-stage goals and tasks for the modernization of agriculture and rural areas. The "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan" period (2026–2030) is a critical stage for consolidating the foundation and exerting full force. We must achieve major breakthroughs in areas such as enhancing comprehensive agricultural productive capacity, quality, and efficiency; promoting the construction of a beautiful countryside that is harmonious and pleasant to live and work in [9]; and improving the effectiveness of policies that strengthen, benefit, and enrich farmers. We must study and apply the experience of the "Project 1,000 Villages Demonstration and 10,000 Villages Renovation" [10], grasping the scientific methodology contained therein, to fulfill the progressively advancing goals and tasks for the modernization of agriculture and rural areas during the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan" period, by 2035, and by the middle of this century.
Regularized assistance must be incorporated into the overall implementation of the rural revitalization strategy. Huge changes have taken place in the lives of the population and areas that have escaped poverty, but a clear gap still exists compared to other groups and regions. We must exert continuous effort to help them avoid falling behind in the process of modernization. Entering a new stage of regularized assistance from 2026 onwards, we must coordinately establish a regularized mechanism to prevent a return to poverty [11], improve the policy system for regularized assistance, and continue targeted monitoring and assistance to ensure early detection, early intervention, and early support. The key is to drive the population and areas out of poverty to rely more on development to continuously consolidate and expand the results of the anti-corruption struggle. We must provide layered and classified assistance to rural households that have escaped poverty. For those lacking skills, the focus should be on strengthening labor skill training; for those with a "wait, lean, and ask" [12] mentality, the focus should be on improving incentive mechanisms and optimizing systems such as "replacing subsidies with awards" and "work-relief" [13]; for those without labor capacity, the focus should be on providing social safety net guarantees. We must provide continuous support for the development of under-developed areas, identifying national and provincial-level key assistance counties through layered and classified assessment, and establishing positive incentive mechanisms. We should guide these assistance counties to tap into their own advantages and enhance their capacity for endogenous development, while external assistance entities should fully utilize their advantages in capital, platforms, and talent to help these regions eliminate obstacles restricting their development.
We must coordinately promote strong agriculture, beautiful rural areas, and wealthy farmers. We should build agriculture into a modern major industry, adapting to the new social demand for diversified and high-quality agricultural products, tapping into the multiple functions of the countryside, and expanding ideas for the development of modern agriculture and rural industries with distinctive advantages. Efforts should be made to broaden the boundaries of agricultural production and enhance the capacity for a diversified food supply; extend the agricultural industrial chain and enhance the capacity for processing, conversion, and integrated development; and promote innovation in agricultural management methods to improve the level of moderate-scale agricultural operations. We must ensure that rural areas basically possess modern living conditions, create high-quality rural living spaces, and effectively improve the quality and effectiveness of building a beautiful countryside that is harmonious and pleasant to live and work in. We must not only improve the degree of completion of rural infrastructure, the convenience of public services, the comfort of the human settlement environment, and the civility of social conduct, but also accurately grasp the laws of rural development and evolution. We should increase the foresight of rural construction, scientifically compile hierarchical plans for cities, towns, and villages within counties, and strengthen the functions of county seats as comprehensive service centers and townships as regional service centers. We should use infrastructure, public services, and the settlement environment to attract the rural population and industries to cluster in central villages, market towns, and areas surrounding county seats. We must ensure that farmers live a more affluent and better life and promote a steady increase in their income.
In 2024, the income ratio between urban and rural residents narrowed to 2.34:1. Further narrowing this ratio is a major matter related to promoting common prosperity and smoothing the domestic cycle [14] of the dual circulation; it must be placed in a prominent position in the formulation and implementation of plans to increase the income of urban and rural residents. We must persist in focusing on both increasing production and increasing income, coordinate trade and production, and promote the maintenance of prices for grain and other important agricultural products at a reasonable level, while expanding the channels and methods for farmers to participate in industrial development. We must coordinately manage service guarantees for migrant workers and support for returning to hometowns for entrepreneurship and employment. This involves enhancing the ability of migrant workers to adapt to changes in the job market through improved vocational skills, and enhancing their capacity to start businesses in their hometowns and drive more farmers toward local employment by ensuring essential factors such as land use and capital. At the same time, we should increase redistribution efforts directed at farmers. Consideration can be given to further raising the minimum standard for the basic old-age pension for urban and rural residents, and steadily increasing the minimum living security standard and other special assistance standards for rural residents.