BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) — "Agriculture is a fundamental undertaking." President Xi Jinping has cited this ancient saying to emphasize the importance of agriculture to a country like China.

The line first appeared in the Discourses on Salt and Iron, a book compiled in the Western Han Dynasty about two thousand years ago.

Citing the words in 2016, Xi said for China to emerge as a strong country, its agricultural sector must be strong. China must have beautiful rural areas to be a beautiful country and must have affluent farmers to be a rich country, Xi added.

Over the years, Xi has repeatedly emphasized the importance of work related to agriculture, rural areas and rural residents.

In his article published in the Qiushi Journal on April 1 this year, Xi said resolving problems related to agriculture, rural areas and rural residents must be the top priority of the work of the Communist Party of China.

The article stressed mobilizing efforts from the whole Party and the whole society to promote rural vitalization, boost high-quality and highly efficient agriculture, build rural areas into pleasant places for life and work, and create an affluent and prosperous life for rural residents.

(Source: Xinhua)