Since last November's 16th National Congress of the Communist Party of China put forward the objective of building a "well-off society in an all-round way," farmers' incomes and rural issues have been a top priority.

The modern usage of the term "well-off" society - in Chinese xiaokang - was pioneered by China's architect of reform, Deng Xiaoping, in 1979 to describe the realization of a Chinese-style modernization.

It was later translated into 16 indices including per capita income, protein intake, life span, Engel Coefficient and telecommunications, according to Dr Lu Shuzheng, an expert in Beijing.

It is hoped that China will achieve a xiaokang society by 2020, one of the goals is to ensure that the nation's per capita gross domestic product will reach US$3,000. In other words, the average economic level throughout the country at that time will reach today's standard in Beijing, economists said.

While many urban residents have prospered in the economic boom brought about by the reform and opening-up of the past two decades, farmers are still struggling to earn a decent income.

Growth of farmers' incomes has remained static for years, and the income gap between rural and urban residents has been widening, Li said.

"A large number of deputies are from rural areas. I think they and others will ensure a lot of attention is given to farmers, the countryside and agriculture," Li said.

Economic disadvantage aside, the rural regions have also been left behind in sectors including infrastructure, education, culture and social welfare. This has become a major obstacle preventing them from enjoying the benefits of growing national prosperity, said government think tank official Chen Xiwen.

Chen, vice-director of the State Council Research and Development Centre, said he expected the NPC deputies and political advisers to come up with substantial ways to make life better for farmers and to eliminate restrictions and prejudice against migrant rural workers.

Ultimately, the pace should be quickened to help rural areas join the country's economic miracle, he said.

Both Li and Chen said the current gatherings of national lawmakers and political advisers will have to address the unemployment problem, which is posing mounting challenges to China both in economic and social terms.

Jobs need to be found for 22 to 23 million urban residents in each year of the 10th Five Year Plan period (2001-05).

But Li Luyang, director of the Economic Office with the Financial and Economic Committee of the Ninth NPC, warned that there remained 150 million redundant farmers in rural areas.

Liu Quanlin, 26, a laid-off worker turned taxi driver in Beijing's Chaoyang District, said he looked forward to hearing "good news" from the meetings of the NPC and the CPPCC National Committee.

He said that the period following the annual meetings would herald substantive changes - steps forward - in the life of ordinary residents, he said.

A record number of Chinese and foreign reporters - more than 3,000 - are covering this year's NPC and CPPCC sessions, official figures revealed yesterday.

(China Daily March 4, 2003)