面对新世纪百舸争流的发展趋势，以及明晦参半的国际环境，我们必须认识到，一个大国经济的根本保证,在于自身的健康。然而令人忧虑的恰恰是，在我国经济持续快速发展的背后，正日益暴露出长期未能解决的一些深层矛盾隐忧。其最大、最急迫者，各界人士的共识是：惟“三农”问题莫属！八亿农民收入增长缓慢，负担难以降低;广大农村发展相对落后,城乡差距进一步扩大;农业失血日趋严重……,如此等等,不仅制约着我国经济的发展，而且可能引发种种矛盾，破坏稳定的社会政治环境。党中央、国务院历来高度重视“三农”问题，“十五”规划以人为本，更将强化农业基础地位，加快中西部地区开发，保证经济可持续发展作为战略目标予以明确。推进农村改革正成为普遍的要求。为此，我刊近期不仅连续组织有关“三农”问题的专题报道，而且与国务院发展研究中心共同举办“ＷＴＯ与中国农村经济发展”系列研讨会，其北京高层研讨引起了各界、包括海外的关注，东北、西北、西南分区会议也在筹备中。这里刊发的一组文章，作者均为我国著名的专家学者。相信他们从不同角度对“三农”问题深层原因的分析，会对大家认识的深化有所裨益。分税制后的最初3年，国家财政支农支出增加仅为68%，而农牧业税收却增长了近2倍，同农业产 In the face of the trend of development in the new century and the complicated and vague international environment, we must realize that the fundamental guarantee for the economy of a big power lies in its own health. However, what worries us precisely is that behind China’s sustained and rapid economic growth, some deep-seated contradictions and worries that have not been solved for a long time are increasingly exposed. The consensus among its largest and most urgent persons and people from all walks of life is: However, the issue of “agriculture, countryside and farmers” is none other than that! 800 million peasants have slow growth and little burden on their incomes. The development of the vast rural areas is lagging behind and the gap between urban and rural areas is further widened. The loss of agriculture is exacerbated. And so on, not only restricts the economic development of our country, but may also lead to various contradictions and destabilize Social and political environment. The Central Party Committee and the State Council have always attached great importance to the issue of “agriculture, countryside and farmers”. In the 10th Five-year Plan, people-oriented planning has also made it clear that they will strengthen their basic agricultural status, accelerate the development of the central and western regions and ensure the sustainable development of their economy. Promote rural reform is becoming a universal requirement. To this end, we have not only continuously organized the special reports on issues concerning agriculture, farmer and rural areas, but also organized a series of seminars on “WTO and Rural Economic Development in China” jointly with the Development Research Center of the State Council. The high-level seminar in Beijing has aroused people from all walks of life, including overseas Concern, Northeast, Northwest, Southwest Division meeting is also in preparation. A series of articles published here, the authors are well-known experts and scholars in our country. I believe they can benefit from deepening our understanding through analysis of the underlying causes of the “three rural issues” from different angles. In the first three years after the tax-sharing system, the expenditure of state finance for supporting agriculture increased by only 68% while that of agriculture and animal husbandry increased nearly two-fold.