Xi extends greetings ahead of farmers' harvest festival

President Xi Jinping reiterated on Thursday the necessity to beef up China's food security, stabilize the fundamentals of the agricultural sector, consolidate the outcomes of poverty alleviation and promote rural vitalization in a concrete manner.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, extended festive greetings and warm regards to farmers and people dedicated to agricultural and rural work ahead of the fifth Chinese Farmers' Harvest Festival, which falls on Friday.

He said the nation could see another bumper harvest this year despite challenges from rare floods and rainstorms last autumn, which caused delays in the seeding of the winter wheat, a surge in COVID-19 cases in some regions and the lingering heat and drought in South China.

He called for Party committees and governments at different levels to faithfully implement the policies, decisions and plans on agriculture, rural areas and farmers from the CPC Central Committee to enable farmers to live more affluent and happier lives and make the countryside more beautiful.

Xi encouraged the nation's farmers to proactively take part in the modernization of agriculture and rural areas to improve their standards of living.

In 2018, China designated the annual autumn equinox as Chinese Farmers' Harvest Festival, in a bid to further strengthen the role of agriculture and rural areas and improve the sense of gain and happiness among farmers.

Xi has long underscored the importance of ensuring China's food security and self-reliance.

During a meeting in March with national political advisers from the sectors of agriculture, welfare and social security, he again highlighted food security as a major issue, calling it one that the nation cannot afford to be complacent about.

The per capita income of rural residents in China reached 9,787 yuan ($1,385) in the first half of the year, up by 4.2 percent year-on-year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.