China is to launch the second national agriculture census on Dec. 31 which will lay the foundation for the country's efforts to deal with agriculture issues.

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

China's first national agriculture census was conducted in 1996. Drastic changes have taken place in the countryside since then.

The new census is of great significance to boost rural economy, social progress and democracy, said Hui, head of the leading group for the census.

The State Council has issued a decree on national agriculture census, which took effect in August. The census, the biggest of its kind ever conducted in the world, is expected to mobilize seven million census workers.

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

It is 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)