Pre-conference Workshop on Rural Transformation successfully held by CCAP at the 32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists in New Delhi

Release date：2024/08/31　　Source： CCAP

On the afternoon of August 2, 2024, China Center for Agricultural Policy (CCAP), Peking University (PKU) successfully held a pre-conference

Workshop titled "Facilitating the Rapid, Inclusive and Sustainable Rural Transformation in Asian Developing Countries" during the 32^nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists (ICAE) in New Delhi, India. The Workshop was co-organized by Professor Jikun Huang, Dean of the School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, PKU and Honorary Director of CCAP, Professor Jinxia Wang, Director of CCAP, and Professor Christopher Findlay from the Australian National University. Sponsored by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), this event provided an important platform for leading scholars and policy experts from various countries to discuss and promote inclusive and sustainable rural transformation strategies in Asian developing countries. More than 100 participants attended the Workshop on the site.

The Workshop opened with remarks by Dr. Wendy Umberger, CEO of ACIAR, Professor Christopher Findlay from the Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University, and Professor Jikun Huang, Dean of the School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, PKU. 

The Workshop was divided into three sessions. The first session, chaired by Professor Christopher Findlay, focused on rural transformation and policies in China and other Asian developing countries. In his keynote speech, Professor Jikun Huang presented the pathway and achievements of rural transformation in China in the past four decades, followed by a thorough analysis of the key forces driving this transformation and a comparative perspective on rural transformations in China and other developing Asian countries, such as Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Vietnam,. He also highlighted the critical role of institutions, policies, and investments (IPIs) in fostering rapid and inclusive rural transformation across these countries. He concluded with a call for future rural economic transformation research to move from the regional to the village and household micro-level studies to gain more insights on how IPIs affect rural transformation. Professor Scott Rozelle from Stanford University served as discussant of Professor Huang’s speech. He acknowledged the importance of effective IPIs and micro level studies. He particularly highlighted the essential role of human capital in the shaping future transformation of rural China.

The second session of the Workshop focused on rural transformation and policies in Southeast Asian countries, which was chaired by Professor Yu Sheng from CCAP. Featured speakers include Dr. Tahlim Sudaryanto, Senior Agricultural Economist at Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency; Dr. Mercy Sombilla, former Undersecretary of the Department of Agriculture of the Philippines; and Dr. Truong Thi Thu Trang, Vice Director General of the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development in Vietnam. Their presentations covered the pathway of rural transformation, its relationship with income, poverty, and food security, and the driving roles of IPIs in shaping rural transformation in their respective countries. Discussants of this session include Professor Tiho Ancev from the School of Economics, University of Sydney and Dr. Nipon Poapongsakorn from the Thailand Development Research Institute. Professor Tiho Ancev emphasized the need to put rural transformation in the broader context of economic transformation, as overall economic development significantly influences transformations in the agricultural sector and rural areas. He also alluded to key issues including food security, non-farm employment, productivity, and the protection of land and other resources. Dr. Nipon Poapongsakorn highlighted the importance of high-value agriculture in rural economic transformation studies. He called for research to explore the factors influencing farmers' decisions to grow high-value crops from both demand and supply perspectives, and analyze the reasons why some policies did not work in specific countries or regions.

Chaired by Professor Jinxia Wang, the last session focused on rural transformation and policies in South Asian countries. There were three presenters in this session: Professor Mohammad Alam from the Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Professor Ashok Gulati from the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, and Professor Fay Rola-Rubzen from the University of Western Australia. They discussed the current state of rural transformation and policies in South Asian countries, including Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. They also addressed the impact of rural transformation on rural employment, rural poverty, income and consumption of rural residents, as well as the role of women's empowerment in the process. Afterwards, three discussants offered their comments and suggestions, including Professor Kei Kajisa from Kyoto University, Associate Professor Lingling Hou, Deputy Director of CCAP, and Professor Carl Pray from Rutgers University. They congratulated the speakers that their researches on rural transformation and policies have already produced insightful findings and established a robust research framework. They emphasized the need for future empirical studies to assess the impact of IPIs, particularly technological advancements, on rural transformation and its outcomes. Moreover, they highlighted the importance to examine the relationship between rural transformation and climate change.

In conclusion, Professor Jikun Huang and Professor Christopher Findlay summarized the key insights from the Workshop and emphasized the importance of strengthening international cooperation and promoting policy innovations. Following the session, all participants were invited to a reception where they continued their in-depth discussions on rural transformation and sustainable development. The participants all agreed that the presentations by scholars from various Asian countries at this Pre-conference Workshop significantly helped to improve their understanding of the current state and challenges of rural transformation in Asia. And they believe these insights will play a crucial role in informing more effective rural development policies in the future.