A man controls the height of plant beds through a mobile phone app at a digital agricultural science and technology industrial park in Inner Mongolia autonomous region. (PHOTO: XINHUA)

By Staff Reporters

China has unveiled version 2.0 of its guideline for building digital villages, a move aimed at tackling emerging challenges while driving rural revitalization through information technology.

The original guideline, released in 2021, laid the groundwork for various digital applications in rural settings. However, such problems as a lack of data integration and sharing mechanism, and sustainable development models, still need to be tackled.

The updated version 2.0 marks enhancements composed of five aspects, such as emphasizing optimized data utilization, carving out a separate section for "smart agriculture" to advance its progress, and showcasing exemplary cases and innovative practices crucial for digital village construction.

Furthermore, to steer digital rural development effectively in 2024, a set of key focal points has been outlined in a separate document.

By the end of 2024, substantial strides are anticipated in fostering digital village infrastructure. The target includes surpassing 200 million rural broadband users, increasing rural internet penetration by two percentage points, and witnessing agricultural e-commerce sales reaching 630 billion RMB.

The roadmap ahead will include upgrading informatization of agricultural production, and the introduction of experts who understand both agriculture, rural areas, farmers and digital technologies.

To realize these aims, pivotal tasks entail upgrading rural network infrastructure, expediting the integration and sharing of rural data resources, promoting the development of smart agriculture, revitalizing rural digital economies, strengthening inclusive digital services for farmers, and accelerating the realization of smart and beautiful villages.

Through all these efforts, China is bridging the digital gap between its rural and urban areas, allowing people from all walks of life to enjoy the benefits brought from its booming digital economy.