On January 23, 2024, the State Council Information Office held a press conference on the economic performance of agriculture and rural areas in 2023. At the conference, Deng Xiaogang, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, stated that in 2023, faced with a complex and severe domestic and international economic situation and frequent and severe natural disasters, the agriculture and rural affairs sectors deeply implemented the important discourses and instructions on "agriculture, rural areas, and rural people" by General Secretary Xi Jinping. They implemented the decisions and arrangements of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and the State Council, spared no effort to tackle difficulties, and maintained a stable and improving trend in the development of agriculture and rural areas. The foundation of "agriculture, rural areas, and rural people" was further consolidated, providing strong support for the economic recovery, improvement, and solid promotion of high-quality development.

Dr. Xiangrui Wang, Associate Professor at our school, was invited to CGTN’s "Global Business" program to interpret the content and data outcomes of the press conference, integrated urban-rural development, and the restart of the China-US agricultural cooperation mechanism. Dr. Wang believes that the grain output of China in 2023, amounting to 1.39082 trillion jin (approximately 695.41 million tons), being stable above 1.3 trillion jin for nine consecutive years, is of great significance for ensuring food security in China and globally. Scientific and technological innovations, along with green development principles, promote high-quality agricultural development in China, aiding rural industrial development and job creation. The bidirectional flow of people, capital, and technology between urban and rural areas provides a continuous driving force for integrated urban-rural development. The restart of the China-US agricultural cooperation mechanism offers a new platform for addressing global food security and climate change challenges.