Farmers with knowledge, technology and management skills are growing.
During the two sessions of the National People’s Congress this year, the General Secretary of the Supreme Leader participated in the deliberation of the delegation many times and delivered important speeches on rural revitalization, innovation and entrepreneurship, which aroused enthusiastic response. This year’s "Government Work Report" puts forward "solidly promoting poverty alleviation and rural revitalization", "persisting in innovation to lead development", "deepening reform in key areas" and "promoting all-round opening up", which also clarifies the path for further promoting high-quality development.
The path has been set, and the focus is on implementation. From now on, this edition will launch a series of reports on "economic focus and implementation after the meeting", focusing on the fields of "agriculture, rural areas and farmers", innovation-driven, deepening reform and opening up, and observing the experiences and ideas of various places in specific practice through on-the-spot visits by reporters, so please pay attention.
At the just-concluded two sessions of the National People’s Congress, the General Secretary of the Supreme Leader stressed during the deliberation of the Henan delegation that the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China made a major decision-making plan to implement the strategy of rural revitalization, which includes industrial revitalization, talent revitalization, cultural revitalization, ecological revitalization and organizational revitalization.
Rural revitalization is inseparable from the strong support of talents. In-depth implementation of the rural revitalization strategy requires a group of new professional farmers with knowledge and technology to take root in the countryside and deepen modern agriculture. According to statistics, there are more than 15 million new professional farmers in China at present, and 68.79% of the new professional farmers play a radiating role in driving the surrounding farmers. On average, each new professional farmer drives 30 farmers.
Where do new professional farmers come from? How to strengthen the cultivation of new professional farmers? This puts higher demands on the work of local governments. In Taicang, Jiangsu Province, a new type of professional farmers with knowledge, technology and management is gradually growing, which has injected fresh blood into the development of modern agriculture in Taicang.
Problem — —
Who will farm the land? How to plant good land?
Taicang ranks among the top 100 counties and cities in China all the year round. As a strong industrial city, why did it start large-scale new professional farmers training so early? Wen Ming, deputy director of Taicang Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau, has been in charge of agriculture and rural areas for many years. Recalling the situation at that time, he was lost in thought.
Thanks to the rapid development of modern agriculture, Taicang was listed as a national demonstration area of modern agriculture as early as 2012, but at the same time, some problems and contradictions also emerged. "During our visit, we found that most of the farmers engaged in agricultural production at that time were over 50 years old, and there was a shortage of labor during the busy farming season. The agricultural labor force ‘ Part-time employment and aging ’ The phenomenon is more serious. When these people are old, who will plant the land? " Wen Ming said.
Ding Xinhong, deputy stationmaster of Shuangfeng Town Agricultural Technology Station, is also worried and thinking about this. He said that although there is no specific statistics, there are only a handful of farmers under the age of 40 in the town, and the basic farmers are old people in their 60 s and 70 s. "When promoting agricultural technology, older farmers are neither willing nor able to accept it, so I hope more young people will engage in agricultural production."
There are 2,200 mu of paddy fields in Donglin Village, Chengxiang Town. In the agricultural machinery warehouse in the village, all kinds of agricultural machinery and equipment are dazzling. Wang Linsheng, a 68-year-old local farmer, is an old tractor driver. When talking about the situation in previous years, he shook his head. "The old machinery has been eliminated, and many new machines have been introduced. There are many buttons with crooked foreign characters on them. Don’t say to operate, just look at it."
Technology and ideas are being updated, and there is a big gap in rural talents. "In this big environment, how to plant good land is another question about the sustainable development of modern agriculture in Taicang." Wen Ming said that in recent years, Taicang began to vigorously cultivate new professional farmers to meet the needs of modern agricultural development.
Cultivate — —
Learn the real skills, and the unit is rushing to ask for it.
On the ridge at the entrance of Donglin village, bundles of straw wrapped in white film are piled up, and an agricultural tractor is unfolding its rocker arm to "catch" the straw bag into the goods vehicle. Looking closer, the driver turned out to be a young man named Shan Yiyi, a post-95 generation. "After scientific treatment, these straws will be used to feed sheep." He said.
In June 2017, after graduating from Suzhou Agricultural Vocational and Technical College, Shan Yiyi came to donglin village Cooperative Farm and became a tractor driver here. "Working in the countryside is much harder than I expected. When I am busy, I have to get up at 3 am and start from home to go to the field for pesticide application."
When I first came, some people talked behind my back: "What industry is not good for college students? Do they have to be farmers?" However, Shan Yiyi has his own understanding. He said, "I am no longer a traditional farmer facing the loess. I deal with advanced machines every day and do technical work, so I am also very proud."
As early as 2013 and 2014, Taicang City, in conjunction with agricultural colleges and universities, adopted directional entrusted training for the first time in China to cultivate professional farmers. In the two phases, a total of 206 agricultural training students were recruited, and Shan Yiyi was one of them.
After learning the real skills, employers are scrambling to get them. At several job fairs held in Taicang City, these agricultural trainees were "robbed and emptied". The salary is not low either. Most of the basic salary exceeds 3,500 yuan, and the "five insurances and one gold" are paid, as well as the year-end bonus. Shan Yi calculated that in 2018, except for the five insurances and one gold deduction, he got a total of more than 60,000 yuan.
"The demand for rural talents is too great." Wang Mingwei, chief of the Science, Education and Information Section of Taicang Agriculture and Rural Bureau, lamented that 206 students were enrolled in the second phase, and 185 people are currently in agricultural posts (including front-line production, village management and other posts). "The effect is very good." He said that by 2020, Taicang plans to train another 200 agricultural trainees.
But even so, the scale is far from enough. In addition to directional training, Taicang City also focuses on continuing education and skills training, and comprehensively promotes the training of new professional farmers.
Tao Yudong, born in 1991, graduated from an agricultural school in Shanghai and went to Hongqiao Village, shaxi town to contract the farm to plant fruit trees. In 2016, the orchard encountered difficulties in management and technology. Just when Tao Yudong was at a loss, shaxi town Rural Work Bureau recommended him to participate in a new professional farmer skills training course held in Taicang City. Most of the teachers were top agricultural experts. Not only did he learn a lot of the latest agricultural technologies in class, but outside the classroom, the teachers were also responsive.
In 2017, a large area of pear rust appeared on the farm. Seeing that the harvest season was approaching, Tao Yudong was anxious, so he turned to the agricultural authorities in Taicang for help. Under their coordination, experts from Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences immediately led a team to the scene and came up with a detailed diagnosis and treatment plan. Soon, the rust spots on pears disappeared and his farm escaped a disaster.
Not long ago, Tao Yudong also received the "New Professional Farmer Certificate" issued by Taicang Agriculture Committee (now "Taicang Agriculture and Rural Bureau"), "Green notebook, stamped with red seal, held in his hand, has a special sense of pride." He said.
According to reports, since the Taicang Municipal Government listed the "New Professional Farmers Cultivation Project" as a practical project of the municipal government in 2013, by the end of 2018, Taicang had trained 21,207 farmers, and the proportion of farmers trained and certified farmers reached 78.23%. After years of hard work, Taicang has cultivated a team of young talents who understand agriculture, love the countryside and love farmers. Today, in Taicang City, there are 564 new professional farmers who have been certified to work. These people are not only in their prime of life, but also have a higher educational level.
Wen Ming said that in January this year, Taicang added 205 new professional farmers with certificates, including 63 with bachelor’s degree and 142 with junior college degree.
Take root — —
Down-to-earth work, the days are coming.
In the spring of March, the breeze Xu Lai, walking on the boulevard in shaxi town, the fragrance of strawberries came from the fields. In a picking garden in Banjing Village, Chen Yifan is taking care of strawberry fields.
Chen Yifan, 24 years old, went home from Suzhou Agricultural Vocational and Technical College to farm. Seeing the reporter coming, he enthusiastically picked a white strawberry and handed it to me. "This is my trial planting this year ‘ Snow White ’ Big head and good color, one can sell a lot of money. " Speak with pride on your face.
After graduating in 2017, Chen Yifan went to work in Banjing Village, but when he came here, he found that although the vegetable output of cooperative farm was high, the profit was average. For example, planting an acre of celery could only earn about 5,000 yuan.
After careful consideration, since the summer of 2018, Chen Yifan has used its own technical expertise to buy fruit and corn seeds for trial planting. Due to the proper cultivation method, a bumper harvest was achieved in the first year. A fruit corn can sell for 8 yuan, and the supply is in short supply. Chen Yifan calculated that an acre of fruit and corn can earn 45,000 yuan a year, and the economic benefits are extremely high. "Although farming is hard, it can also grow a sense of pride. As long as it is down-to-earth, the days will still be ahead." Chen Yifan said.
In the past three years, Tao Yudong, while attending agricultural skills training, has also improved the planting mode of green-skinned pears on the farm, and designed Y-shaped and petrel-shaped scaffolding, which not only doubled the yield per mu, but also enabled the products to be listed half a month in advance. In 2018, the fruit harvested by the farm reached more than 80,000 kilograms, four times that of three years ago.
Nowadays, in Taicang, more and more young people have become new professional farmers through training. "Being a farmer is also very proud and there is hope for farming" has become their consensus. "After training, the new professional farmers not only have a good technical foundation and strong acceptance, but also are full of passion and enthusiasm." Wen Ming said.
In the past few years, many outstanding new professional farmers have begun to emerge. These young people have not only helped the development of modern agriculture in Taicang, but also found a broad development space on the big stage of rural revitalization. (Reporter Wang Weijian)