As the country lifted millions of people out of poverty, the rigid land use rights system and divided urban-rural structure restricted the rural economy.

The past three decades have seen tremendous changes in the lives of Chinese farmers.

Average rural income has risen from 134 yuan in 1978 to over four thousand yuan in 2007, a 30-fold increase.

The country fed a fifth of the world population with just under 7 percent of the world's arable land, reducing the impoverished population from 250 million to 15 million.

The rise of rural factories and township enterprises has accelerated the urbanization process, raising urban coverage to 45 percent, an increase of 30 percent over the 1970s.

Analysts say the success of rural reform lies in policy-makers' respect for farmers' creativity, protection of their interests and rights, and relying on market forces.