The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) was established in 1957.Different from provincial agricultural research institutes ,CAAS is China's national agricultural research organization ,directly affiliated to the Ministry of Agriculture.
　　CAAS has a strategic task of serving nation-wide agricultural and rural development and empowering farmers with science and technology .Its major mandates focus on strategic and applied research solving determinant and key scientific problems which are of national or regional importance.
　　CAAS has about 10,000 staff members and 38 research institutes located across 17 different provinces ,national municipalities and the autonomous regions. In 1996,the Ministry of Agriculture conducted an assessment of agriculture science and technology research organizations nation wide. 17 CAAS institutes were among the top 100. Our Plant Protection Research Institutes were among the top 100.Our Plant Protection Research Institute was rate number one in the nation .Six CAAS institutes were among the top 10 advanced strategic agricultural research institutions nation wide.
　　As the only agricultural research academy in China that can confer Ph.D. degree in agricultural sciences , CAAS has a Graduate School ,five State Key Crop Variety Improvement Centers and subcenters,22 national and ministerial level Key Open Laboratories ,and 17 national and ministerial commodity quality supervision and testing centers.
　　Meanwhile ,the academy owns about 100 scientific and technology based enterprises with nearly 2100 personnel engaged in science and technology business development.
　　CAAS is a key open window representing China's agricultural science and technology for international collaboration .We have extensive international cooperation relationships with more than 40 countries and international organizations .Designates by the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA),CAAS plays a strong leadership role in China's collaboration network with the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research(CGIAR)in teamed efforts with agricultural universities and other agricultural research institutions.
　　By the year 2030,the Chinese population will reach 1.6 billion .The problems of population Pressure ,food security ,environment and resource stresses are becoming most acute .China's annual food grain production should ,compared with the present level ,increase another 150 million kg ,reaching the level of 680 million kg per annum .Seriously constrained by arable land and irrigation water ,the breakthrough of science and technology is the only way to realize our nation agricultural development objectives .This is reflected in President Jiang Zemin's call for a "new revolution in agricultural science and technology."
　　In this modernization drive, CAAS is developing an overall strategic plan that positions fundamental research ,applied research ,bio-technology and industrial business development as its main thrusts .Continuously optimizing these disciplinary combinations ,CAAS will open new research fields with clear priorities .The Academy needs to streamline its organization by diverting its staff members in a way that scientists are involved in strategic and applied research ,technical consultation and extension ,and business development and commercialization ,in proportion to the market needs. CAAS will also pay great attention to capacity building for the 21st century ,in order to strengthen the academy itself as well as its efforts to empower the sustainable rural and agribusiness development with science and technology .With the growing trend of globalization of science and technology ,CAAS looks upon international cooperation as a corner stone for advancing China's agricultural research ,upgrading people's welfare and optimizing the management of natural resources .We would like to share our vision ,our efforts and our sincerity with friends of the North and South ,to embrace a challenging and promising 21 century.