Xi extends greetings ahead of farmers' harvest festival

BEIJING -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, has extended festive greetings and sincere regards on behalf of the CPC Central Committee to farmers and people working on agricultural and rural fronts ahead of the ninth Chinese farmers' harvest festival.

Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, stressed the importance of solid efforts to advance all-around rural revitalization and ensure that farmers live happier and better lives.

Xi noted that this year, China's summer grain output hit a new record and early rice output remained stable, while a bumper autumn harvest is within sight.

Party committees and governments at all levels should work to ensure that policies aimed at strengthening agriculture, benefiting farmers and enriching rural areas deliver greater outcomes and enhance the overall production capacity, quality and performance of agriculture, he said.

Efforts should be made to expand channels for rural residents to increase incomes and build a beautiful and harmonious countryside for people to live and work in, based on local conditions, Xi said.

The Chinese farmers' harvest festival is the first national festival created specifically for the country's farmers. This year's festival falls on Wednesday.

Launched in 2018, the festival coincides with the Autumnal Equinox each year, which is one of the 24 solar terms of the Chinese lunisolar calendar and usually falls between Sept 22 and 24 during the country's agricultural harvest season.