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High-Level Symposium on Agricultural Development Convenes

Source:MARA Date:2021-10-13

 

"The High-Level Symposium on China’s Agricultural Development and the WTO: 20 Years On" was held in Beijing on Oct. 11. Ma Youxiang, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA), attended the symposium and delivered a keynote speech. Zhang Xiangchen, Deputy Director-General of the WTO, Wang Shouwen, Vice Minister of Commerce and Deputy China International Trade Representative, and Zhou Hanmin, Standing Committee Member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and Vice-Chairman of the Shanghai Committee of the CPPCC, delivered remarks. Li Jinxiang, National Chief Veterinarian of MARA, presided over the symposium.

 

Ma pointed out that joining the WTO was a major decision based on China’s comprehensive analysis of the situation at home and abroad, and a milestone in China’s reform and opening-up. Agriculture was the key issue, the sticking point, and the focus in China’s negotiations to join the WTO. China made critical commitments to opening the agriculture sector. These commitments were key factors in China’s integration into the multilateral trading system.

Ma emphasized that over the past two decades, China has faithfully fulfilled its commitments and become a straight-A student in the WTO. Since China joined the WTO and started to open up, its agriculture sector has withstood various major challenges, including the global food crisis, the financial crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic. China’s capacity for participating in global agricultural competition as well as its food and agricultural governance has improved dramatically. The agriculture sector has developed as China has opened the market, maintained stability while rising to various challenges and enjoyed progress in competition. China’s success in agriculture is due to the fact that the Chinese government attaches great importance to work relating to agriculture, rural areas and the rural population, and that agricultural departments have persistently improved themselves and done their jobs well. Going forward, China will continue to push for WTO negotiations over agricultural reform, promote bilateral, regional and multilateral opening-up and cooperation, and speed up efforts to find new ways to open the sector, so as to facilitate the modernization of agriculture and rural areas.

The Development Research Center of the State Council, Renmin University of China, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of Guangdong Province, and the Louis Dreyfus Company presented special reports. Representatives from the Ministry of Commerce, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Finance, as well as relevant industry associations, international organizations, and MARA departments, participated in the symposium.

Relevant Annexes: