60 People, 60 Stories

Planting seeds of stability

(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-09-30 08:26

China's experience of attempting to develop a modern agricultural system over the past 60 years can teach many other developing countries important lessons.

The main lesson from the first half of this period is that government policies regulating and limiting small farmers' participation can constrain development.

The lesson from the last 30 years is that reform, more market integration, and an increasing focus on research and development can lead to tremendous success in agriculture and the development of the rural economy.

My first impressions of Chinese agriculture date back to the late-1980s. I was fascinated then by the entrepreneurship of small farmers and their capacity to apply new technology.

In more recent visits to farmers in China, I have been particularly impressed with how Chinese small farmers, many of whom are women, manage their value chains and how they connect to consumers.

Despite significant progress in food production in past decades, China faces a serious challenge of feeding its large population.

To ensure food security for itself and the rest of the world, the government should not follow a narrowly defined self-sufficiency approach but engage in trade with the rest of the world.

The next big challenge is to massively increase the productivity and sustainability of water use in Chinese agriculture. Water-use efficiency will be an ever-growing challenge with climate change.

Joachim von Braun is director general of the International Food Policy Research Institute.