Xi stresses high-quality development of supply and marketing cooperative cause

　　BEIJING, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- On the occasion of the 70th founding anniversary of the All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, Chinese president, and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made important instructions and extended cordial greetings to the vast number of cadres and employees in the national supply and marketing cooperative system. He also extended warm congratulations to the commended outstanding groups and individuals.

　　Xi pointed out that over the past 70 years, supply and marketing cooperatives have always committed themselves to the Party's central tasks, actively served the overall situation, and played an active role in serving urban and rural residents, boosting the rural economy, helping with poverty alleviation, promoting farmers' income growth, and advancing rural revitalization.

　　Xi emphasized that on the new journey of the new era, Party committees and governments at all levels should further strengthen their leadership over and support for the work of supply and marketing cooperatives and make full use of this force. Supply and marketing cooperatives should earnestly implement the new development philosophy, stay committed to agriculture and rural areas, focus on their principal responsibilities and main tasks, deepen comprehensive reforms, strengthen institutional innovation, and continuously build a comprehensive platform for serving farmers' production and lives and promoting the development of modern agriculture. They should also serve as a bridge and bond linking the Party and the government closely with farmers, and strive to write a new chapter in the high-quality development of the supply and marketing cooperative cause, thus making greater contributions to advancing the all-around rural revitalization and building up China's strength in agriculture.

　　Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, gave an instruction, urging supply and marketing cooperatives to implement the guiding principles of Xi's important instructions and the CPC Central Committee's decisions and arrangements, stay committed to their mission and responsibilities, leverage their unique strengths, deepen reforms, promote innovation, strive to improve their operation and management, and continuously consolidate the foundation of serving agriculture, rural areas and farmers. He also urged the supply and marketing cooperatives to further promote the high-quality development of agricultural supplies, distribution of agricultural products, commercial agricultural services as well as recycling and utilization of renewable resources, among others, to better serve the production and lives of farmers and play a greater role in promoting integrated urban-rural development and speeding up modernization of agriculture and rural areas.

　　A meeting to commemorate the 70th founding anniversary of the All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives was held in Beijing on Nov. 28. At the meeting, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and the All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives jointly commended the outstanding groups and individuals as well as model workers of the national supply and marketing cooperative system. Representatives of the award winners delivered speeches.

　　The All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives was founded in 1954. Over 70 years of development, the cooperatives have extended their full commercial agricultural services, expanded their comprehensive urban and rural community services, and formed a comprehensive, large-scale and sustainable service system for agriculture, rural areas and farmers in a faster manner, now playing a unique and important role in advancing all-around rural revitalization and building up China's strength in agriculture. ■