Reforms aim to increase farmers’ pay

The Communist Party approved rural reforms aimed at unleashing the economic power of hundreds of millions of farmers as China looks to home markets as a bulwark against the global financial crisis.

The party said it aims to double the annual income of farmers, currently about $590 per person, over the next 12 years.

State media reports before a four-day meeting said the Central Committee would review an amendment to give 750 million rural dwellers more freedom to lease or transfer their land, but the final statement did not mention the issue. Chinese economists hope the agricultural reforms will lead to larger, more efficient farms.