Source: CCTV.com

02-22-2008 11:15

The National Bureau of Statistics released the latest national agricultural census on rural communities and farmers.

The National Bureau of Statistics released the latest national agricultural census on rural communities and farmers.

According to the survey, the agricultural mechanization has been improved greatly. Machine farmed areas accounted for nearly 60 percent of the total area in 2006, up nearly 20% compared to ten years ago.

The survey also showed that infrastructure in rural areas also improved a lot. By the end of 2006, highways reached more than 95 percent of the country's villages, while nearly 99 percent of villages have electricity, 98 percent villages have telephone lines and TV network.

Referring to labor, there were 530 million resident laborers in rural areas by the end of 2006, and more than 99 percent had their own houses.

Huang Hanquan, Official of NDRC said "I think the greatest changes in villages are farmer's living conditions, and the infrastructure. The imbalance between rural and urban areas is easing."

The second National Agricultural Survey has been in progress for nearly three years, covering more than 650,000 villages and more than 200 million households. The Bureau will soon release other surveys concerning agricultural production, the rural labor force and employment, living conditions of rural residents and the environment of rural communities.

Editor:Xiong Qu