The Agricultural Economics Program of China

Abstract

HIS paper' is a brief description of the principal lines of work now being carried out in the Department of Rural Economy, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Chungking, China. The scope of work assigned by the National Legislative body to the Department of Rural Economy, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, is rather broad. It includes: (1) the reform of land tenure, (2) the planning and supervision of agricultural credit, (3) the improvement of farm management, (4) survey and research in rural economy, and (5) other rural welfare affairs. These provisions indicate that the nature of work of the Department is both administrative and research, both action and fact-finding. In recent years, however, we have paid more attention to the third and fourth categories of work as listed above; that is, the improvement of farm management and the survey and research in rural economy. We believe that unless the organization and the operation of the farm are materially improved, the welfare of the farmer can hardly be promoted, and that before we can formulate any definite policy and put it into effect, we have to find out facts. In the following, therefore, I shall say a few more words about farm management and agricultural survey and research although other phases of work will also be touched upon. I. Reform of Land Tenure. The purpose of the reform of land tenure is twofold. The first is to protect the tenant farmers and to raise their economic standing. The second is to help and to build up owner farmers so as to attain eventually the objective that those who cultivate the land are also owners of the land and to wipe out the boundary now existing between the landlords and the tenants. The methods of approach in this connection may be described briefly as follows: (A) Protecting the tenant-In accordance with the Land Law adopted more than ten years ago, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has instructed the various provinces to reduce land rent, specifying that the rent should not exceed 37.5 percent of the total