Thoughts on Science and Technology Service in Provincial Agricultural Research Institutes under the New Normal: Taking Changli Institute of Pomology of Hebei Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences as an Example

Lixian CUI, Jinli LIU

Changli Institute of Pomology, Hebei Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Changli 066600, China

Abstract In the context of the new normal of high-quality agricultural development, it is necessary to accelerate the comprehensive connection of scientific and technological services of provincial agricultural research institutes and industries, and mobilize the enthusiasm of scientific and technological service personnel. Under the new normal, traditional service types are single, technology promotion and training are becoming narrower and narrower. This article analyzed the problems in scientific and technological services of provincial agricultural research institutes, including lack of comprehensive demonstration bases, not close cooperation between scientific and technological and the government and new business entities, and lack of incentive mechanism. Finally, it came up with some pertinent recommendations such as improving supporting mechanism construction, making classified evaluation, and changing the scientific and technological service concepts.

Key words Agricultural scientific and technological services, Current situations, Problems, Prospects

1 Introduction

Scientific and technological service, as the key to the close integration of agricultural science and technology with economy, is of great significance for transforming agricultural development methods, promoting increase of farmers’ income, and achieving high-quality agricultural development. A number of scholars have conducted in-depth research on the models and approaches, exploration and practice of agricultural scientific and technological services. For example, Liu Jianfeng

et

al.

, from the study of agricultural technology extension models, found that it has provided various new agricultural business entities with highly applicable and highly matched agricultural scientific and technological services. However, there are still problems such as weak awareness of scientific and technological services by scientific researchers and insufficient attention to scientific and technological services. In this study, taking Changli Institute of Pomology, Hebei Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences as an example, we analyzed the current situations and existing problems of scientific and technological personnel in agricultural scientific research institutes, and came up with pertinent recommendations, in order to provide strong scientific and technological support for rural revitalization strategies and high-quality agricultural development.

2 Current situations

2.1 Services of achievement demonstration bases

Focusing on typical areas around the superior industries, Changli Institute of Pomology, Hebei Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences has established a batch of experimental fields, demonstration sites, and radiation areas to provide farmers with visible and scientific demonstration models. It is characterized as transferring the latest scientific research achievements to the field, demonstrating to farmers, and then promoting the achievements. It has a strong leading and demonstration role. At present, Changli Institute of Pomology, Hebei Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences has formed a good many of influential demonstration bases such as Kuancheng chestnut, Xinglong chestnut and Luannan grape, Lulong apple, Zanhuang cherry.

2.2 Sending science and technology to rural areas

Relying on the scientific and technological expert service team of the institute, Changli Institute of Pomology has organized hundreds of experts to provide timely, invited and emergency services according to the farming season and on-site training to directly provide face-to-face technical services to farmers, went to the fields for many times, serve tens of thousands of farmers, and demonstrate and promote advanced scientific and technological achievements to help poor farmers get rich through science and technology. Intuitive and obvious driving effects are its characteristics.

2.3 Undertaking production technical training

Changli Institute of Pomology closely focused on scientific and technological needs and has organized scientific and technical personnel to carry out extensive agricultural production technical training. It concentrated on the training of leaders such as large households, family farmers, agricultural cooperatives,

etc.

In view of the common technical problems of agricultural industry development, Changli Institute of Pomology compiled advanced and applicable crop varieties and cultivation techniques, forming a series of practical agricultural technology that is well-documented and easy to understand, distribute in conjunction with training to promote the popularization of advanced agricultural technologies.

2.4 Relying on talents in the three areas to do scientific and technological services

In accordance with the relevant requirements of Hebei Province, Hebei Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences annually selected about 100 scientific and technological talents from the project for three areas (remote poor areas, border areas with mainly ethnic minority populations, and old revolutionary base areas) to go to poor areas for paired assistance and technical services. Among them, Changli Institute of Pomology sent 8 personnel with senior titles or above to Pingquan City and Xinglong County to carry out activities such as technical guidance, indoor and outdoor training, providing new fruit tree varieties, and offering agricultural machinery and gardening tools to promote the masses to get rich and facilitate the transformation of low-yield parks and support regional poverty alleviation.

2.5 Helping poverty-stricken villages to get rid of poverty through industrial promotion

Changli Institute of Pomology actively responded to the national call, assisted poverty alleviation through industrial development planning and implementation of villages, strengthened the cultivation of new business entities and the introduction of leading enterprises. Changli Institute of Pomology has sent two party members and cadres above section level to Nanyao Village, Qingsanying Township in Chongli District, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province, participated in the targeted poverty alleviation work for one to two years, and actively promoted the poverty alleviation policies of the country, province, city, and district to poor villagers, and promoted the inherent motivation for the villagers to get rid of poverty and become rich. It fully mobilized the enthusiasm of villagers to get rid of poverty and get rich. Based on the principle of "maximizing the interests of villagers", it made plan and took measures for sustainable poverty alleviation and getting rich measures, and achieve the goals of "really helping the poor" and "helping the real poor".

3 Existing problems

In recent years, Hebei Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences and its affiliated research institutes have found new paths in scientific and technological services and made new achievements, but there are still some problems in scientific and technological services.

3.1 Scattered demonstration bases, small in scale, few independent achievements, and lack of comprehensive demonstration bases

There are many demonstration bases for a single fruit tree species, the distribution is uneven, some are small and some are large, very uneven. Besides, there are few demonstration bases for compound tree species, and few bases that can integrate all northern fruit tree species.

3.2 Not close cooperation between scientific and technological services and the government and new business entities

Scientific and technological service personnel generally directly face the growers, fruit farmers, and enterprises that have demands. Even if there is an agreement with the government, the tracking management, supervision and inspection, and demonstration effect are very small.

3.3 Insufficient supporting and leading role of the demonstration base for industrial development and few outstanding points

At present, the base demonstration is mainly cultivation management technology, lack of material and chemical products, insufficient reserves of scientific and technological achievements, and the service mode is still based on traditional teaching. There is a big gap between the whole industry chain technology services, real-time technology information services, brand building, e-commerce, and agricultural financial services under the new normal. The concept, model and influence of scientific and technological services need to be further improved.

3.4 Lack of management mechanism and incentive mechanism

Due to deviations in the understanding of achievement transformation policies, such as "persons who have made direct or important contributions to the transformation of achievements", it is difficult to quantify and identify, so there will be differences in the distribution of benefits. There is no policy or system for the balanced development and sustainable development of the institute, and no detailed management methods or guidance opinions. In addition, there is no incentive mechanism for talents engaged in scientific and technological services, and a set of scientific and standardized scientific and technological achievements evaluation indicator system has not been established.

4 Recommendations

4.1 Making full use of the advantages of scientific and technological resources and platforms and talents to expand the content of scientific and technological services

To comply with national policies and fully implement the spirit of the 19National Congress of the Communist Party of China and General Secretary Xi Jinping’s strategic concept of poverty alleviation, Changli Institute of Pomology should thoroughly implement the work deployment of the provincial party committee and the provincial government on poverty alleviation, and give full play to the supporting and leading role of agricultural science and technology in poverty alleviation, carefully organize scientific and technological resources such as the achievements, technologies, experts, and platforms of agricultural research institutes across the province, rely on science and technology to support major projects such as "one product for one village", "one industry for one county," and other major projects in the provincial modern agricultural industrial park, and unite project construction units to establish a service group of scientific and technological experts for the whole industry chain.

4.2 Innovating systems and mechanisms to enhance the endogenous motivation for the transformation of achievements

It is recommended to make full use of the government technology promotion award policy, and link it with the evaluation of professional titles, job promotion, and awards for promotion, and formu-late a highly operable technology service performance system, make the standards incline to the grassroots and the front line, so that the majority of scientific and technological personnel are willing to do, like to do, and obligated to do. It is recommended to include the performance of scientific and technological poverty alleviation work in the evaluation of professional and technical titles. In order to mobilize the enthusiasm of scientific and technological personnel to engage in poverty alleviation work, and to objectively and fairly evaluate the performance level and actual contribution of professional and technical personnel, we can include the achievements of scientific and technological personnel undertaking provincial poverty alleviation tasks into the evaluation of professional titles. For example, it is possible to give scientific and technological awards and the level of presiding subjects according to the working hours of poverty alleviation in the village and the level of honorary title (excellent assessment).

4.3 Changing the concept of scientific and technological services from "promoting" to "leading", and fostering and strengthening a number of leading local agricultural industries

It is recommended to build a batch of demonstration bases with "excellent technology, good demonstration effect, and high farmers’ evaluation" through the continuous injection of scientific and technological elements relying on major scientific and technological projects. Besides, it is recommended to change the scientific and technological service modes, and make effort to establish a new chain service model of "scientific research test base+regional demonstration base+grassroots service system+large agricultural households".

4.4 Improving the construction of training mechanism

The objects of scientific and technological services hope to get simple, easy-to-learn, and practical services. It is recommended to encourage more and more new agricultural business entities to participate, strengthen the integration of key technologies, form comprehensive solutions and models that can be reproduced or extended, and teach students in accordance with their aptitude.