Rural Development in China with a Special Focus on Agricultural Modernization and Rural Tourism and the Potential Areas of Cooperation between China and Austria

摘要

The Chinese central government has greatly prioritized rural development in recent years as evidenced in the13th Five-Year-Plan of the People's Republic of China and the No.1Central Document2017.Two major tools to induce economic growth in rural regions are the modernization of agricultural technology and the diversification of rural tourism.Thus,the overall aim of this thesis is to successfully assess and measure the current state of rural development in China in regards to agricultural modernization and rural tourism in order to further evaluate potential areas of collaboration between China and Austria in fostering a more effective development ofthe rural area.Therefore,in order to gain an insight of this topic,extensive research in primary and secondary literature was necessary to obtain enough evidence to draw a conclusion.As a result,the author's findings indicate that the current state of agricultural modernization in China is uneven and a downward shift is recognizable comparing the Eastern and the Western region of the country.Thus,a steady and sustainable development in China,despite national commitments,could also be partly achieved by a collaboration with Austrian companies in certain niche markets in intelligent agriculture and organic farming in regards to agricultural modernization and project-based consulting and implementation in the rural tourism sector such as ski-based tourism,wellness tourism and eco-tourism in the rural area.Based on this,the author concludes that a cooperation with Austria in certain sectors may support a faster,more effective and more sustainable development of rural communities in regards to agricultural technology and long-term tourism growth.