China can learn from South Korea's success in building new
villages, said Chinese experts after their three-day investigation
tour to South Korea, which was jointly organized by the Chinese
Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), China Green Food
Association, China Youth Travel Service (CYTS), Renmin University
of China, and China News Service.
According to a chinanews.com report on June 6, the experts said
that if China is to realize its goals of "building a new socialist countryside", it
should strengthen and increase exchange and cooperation with South
Korea and draw on its experiences.
South Korea's "building new villages drive" that started in the
1970s has been instrumental in transforming it from a backward
agricultural country into a world developed economy, said Li
Xiande, an economics expert with the Institute of Agricultural
Economics and Development under the CAAS. "The drive is aimed at
changing South Korean farmers' living environment, increasing their
incomes, and promoting agricultural production," Li said, adding
that government support plays an important role in the process.
Liang Jie, vice president of the China Green Food Association,
said that the drive has greatly helped develop South Korea's
agricultural industry, increase the competitiveness of its
agricultural products, and protect farmers' rights and
interests.
Zhang Lijun, deputy CEO of CYTS, said that the South Koreans had
come up with a novel idea of introducing a "sightseeing tour with
the 'building new villages' drive as the main attraction". He said
that a similar localized idea could be adopted for China since it
meets the requirements of Chinese tourists, especially farmers.
Tong Zhihui, a lecturer from the School of Agricultural
Economics and Development, Renmin University, said that, taking a
panoramic view of agricultural changes in South Korea, the
"building new villages" drive is important, and the experiences are
worth studying by China and will benefit the Chinese people a great
deal.
The Chinese delegation visited South Korea at the invitation of
the Korean National Tourism Organization under the auspices of the
Ministry of Culture and Tourism of South Korea. As an overseas
publicity arm of the South Korean government, the organization is
responsible for marketing South Korea's success stories and
traditional culture in China.
The organization also has plans to invite more Chinese farmers
and agricultural management personnel to visit South Korea. Such
trips would help the Chinese gain a better understanding of South
Korea's "building new villages" drive and culture in general.
During their three-day visit, the Chinese delegation visited the
Central Research Institute, which supervises the Building New
Villages Drive, located in Kangwon Circuit, an agriculture
technology center, a village in Wonju that stands out as one of the
program's successes; and several villages still in the pilot stages
of the program.
The visiting experts agreed that due to inherent cultural,
geographical and historical differences, China would not adopt the
South Korean model wholesale. Rather, it would adapt the concept to
suit China's needs and natural conditions. Moreover, the key thing
that impressed the Chinese was the South Korean spirit of hard work
and striving for progress, the intellectual wealth that is
necessary if the Chinese are to successfully build a new socialist
countryside.
(China.org.cn by Li Jingrong, June 7, 2006)