The second national agriculture census in China will be launched on December 31. It's designed to lay the foundation for the country's efforts to deal with agriculture issues.

The census is an important step in the process of building a new socialist countryside, said Vice Premier Hui Liangyu at a conference yesterday.

China's first national agriculture census was conducted in 1996 and dramatic changes have occurred in the countryside since then.

The new census was of great significance to boost rural economies, social progress and democracy, said Hui, who heads the census leading group.?

The State Council issued a decree on the national agriculture census?that took effect in August. The exercise, the biggest of its kind ever conducted in the world, is expected to require?7 million census workers.

The contents of the census will include details of households and businesses engaged in agriculture, the environmental situation in the countryside, land use, fixed asset investment, employment in rural areas and the quality of life for farmers.

It's estimated that some 30,000 townships, 600,000 villages and more than 200 million rural households will be covered in the census.

(Xinhua News Agency December 14, 2006)