China Raises Disaster Fund to Respond to Drought Disaster

Strengthening Crackdown on Agricultural Produce Theft

As droughts occur in many regions of China, efforts are being made to prepare countermeasures. There is a busy scene, including raising related disaster funds and strengthening the crackdown on agricultural product theft.

The riverbed in Jiangxi Province, China, dried up due to the drought in 2022 [Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

On the 18th, China's state-run Xinhua News Agency reported that the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs recently sent 443 million yuan in agricultural production disaster prevention and relief funds to local governments. The funds will be used in seven regions experiencing drought disasters, including Hebei, Shanxi, and Jiangsu. They are expected to be used for irrigation of rice paddies and fields and increasing fertilizer application.

Recently, in China, due to the lack of rain amid a heatwave, problems have arisen in summer sowing and crop growth caused by soil moisture loss. Accordingly, the Ministry of Water Resources has recently implemented a four-level emergency drought response targeting eight provinces, including Hebei, Henan, and Shandong.

The head of China's public security announced that agricultural crime crackdowns, such as the sale of fake agricultural products and destruction of farmland, will be strengthened to ensure food security. Wang Xiaohong, Minister of Public Security, inspected Henan Province, a granary region in central China, the day before, stating, "Food security is an important foundation of national security."

Unlike the drought occurring in northern China, in the southern region, villages are submerged due to floods, and damage to agricultural products is increasing. Due to heavy rain causing landslides, at least nine people have been reported dead in China so far. The heavy rain also caused major cultural heritage sites in the region to collapse.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.