Assess how important the rural peasantry is to Chinas economic development

since 1978.
Amongst Chinas economic reforms, agriculture is of the ones given most priority
and emphasis. While rural peasantry with its ability to stabilize food security
forms that basis for Chinas economic development upon which other areas of
development can be built on, in and of itself it is not able to bring China to where
it is today and its quantifiable economic worth is actually rather limited. Hence,
this essay seeks to argue that rural peasantry is limited in importance to the
economic development of China as it merely played an indirect and assistive role
in building the economy.
Rural peasantry provides the Chinese economy with affordable food supply such
that national security can be attained, which without, economic development
could not have been and cannot be carried out. The large population of
1.4million Chinese meant that food demand in China is very high and hard to
satisfy, causing the rural peasantry role to be important as a lack of food supply
may spark off widespread resentment. Political stability in China has always been
closely linked to the ability of the government in securing food, particularly grain
for its people. The fact that despite of the pressure that would be placed on the
budget when government raises agriculture procurement prices such that
farmers would be entice to stay on their land to produce cropsattests to the
importance of agriculture and hence rural peasantry. The inability of the Chinese
rural economy to modernize quickly and to improve on its crop productivity all
the more highlights the importance of rural peasantry. Hence, rural peasantry is
important to Chinas economy it safeguards national security such that economic
development can be focus on.
However, rural peasantrys importance to economic development is dwindling as
economic modernization was carried out. Dengs reforms marked the beginning
of deemphasizing on agricultural economy in Chinese history. Whereas for
millennium China had been an agriculture economy, China after 1978 had moved
to become a manufacturing-based economy and the factory of the world. This
is supported by Dengs subordination of the agrarian economy to Chinas
industrialization and urbanization, reducing the importance of rural peasantry.
Despite most of Chinas arable being along the coastal regions, China used these
pieces of land mostly for commerce purposes. Crops produced by the rural
peasantry are also given to the cities to support their growth by making food
prices affordable. With the Number 1 Agricultural Work Document, Chinese
economy is also focusing on high-tech investments including genetically
modified crops, further reducing the role of the backward rural peasantry. The 30
agricultural cooperation deals with developing countries in Africa and South-east
Asia also further reduce the role of the rural peasantry. Hence, rural peasantrys
role in supporting economic development through safeguarding food and hence
national security may be limited.
Rural peasantry is important to Chinas economic development as it may become
a liability to the economy if it is not managed properly. Chinas mentality of grain
self-sufficiency and the fear of instability for the lack of it have resulted in the
state spending large amount of resources to support it. To ensure more efficient
production, Deng had introduced privatization and decentralization policies to
enhance work incentives. However, food prices remained artificially low as the
government still had to subsidize them heavily for grain procurement from
peasants. Increased costs of living, socio-economic marginalization and

environmental destruction soon made life so very difficult for the peasants that
many are moving to the urban areas, contributing to disparity even within
provinces and social tension. Competition with foreign farm products with
economic globalization is but another threat to rural livelihood. As such, rural
peasantry is important to Chinas economic development as it may instead of
supporting Chinas economic growth become a hindrance if it is not managed
well.
Nevertheless, remedies with limited effectiveness have been put in place to curb
with the challenges that arise out of Chinas rural peasantry, thereby limiting its
importance as a potential challenge. To remedy depletion of Chinas arable lands
for non-agricultural purposes, the government has vowed to keep at least
120million hectares of arable lands for agriculture. The central government
hasalso expanded the jurisdiction and imposed stronger disciplinary actions and
enforcement to take actions against errant bureaucrats that violate
environmental laws and rights of the individual peasant through irresponsible
behavior such as land grabs. Number 1 document, a direct subsidy and
elimination of taxes for the peasants, has increased the amount of subsidies
given to peasants sharply. To improve rural livelihood, the government has also
increased spending on social causes in the countryside like allowing students to
go through nine-year of compulsory education for free. Poverty-stricken families
are also given extra grants, something that is generally well-received by the
poorer folks. Li Ke Qiang, Chinas premier from 2013 had also pledged to hasten
and broaden the scope of urbanization so that more residents can benefit from
better living quality. Therefore, the importance of rural peasantry as a potential
challenge is limited.
In conclusion, while rural peasantry with its ability to stabilize food security forms
that basis for Chinas economic development upon which other areas of
development can be built on, it is not able to bring China to where it is today and
its quantifiable economic worth is actually rather limited. Hence, this essay seeks
to argue that rural peasantry is limited in importance to the economic
development of China as it merely played an indirect and assistive role in
building the economy.