Chinese vice premier Hui Liangyu called Friday for more technological innovations in the agricultural sector to ensure adequate food supplies and sharpen China's competitive edge in the global market.

Hui stressed the importance of technology in resolving issues related to agriculture, rural areas and farmers.

The vice premier said the country needs to accelerate the building of a national mechanism to promote innovation.

He called on colleges and research institutes to play an active role in spreading advanced technologies and encouraged technologists to go to the countryside and serve needy farmers.

He said the government would finance public technology institutes and human resources training to build a globally competitive expert team.

Hui made the remarks when meeting with a group of pacemaker technologists from across the nation who received awards from the central government.

Despite serious natural disasters, China last year reaped a rich grain harvest with total output reaching 497 billion kilograms, 13 billion kilograms up on the previous year.

However, observers warned that the country is not producing enough grain for its huge population.

The Study Times, a periodical affiliated to the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, predicted that China could face a 4.8 million ton grain shortage in 2010, almost nine percent of the country's grain consumption.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao repeatedly stressed the "great importance" of agriculture at the annual NPC session, saying that agriculture is the foundation of the Chinese economy and directly concerns people's lives and social stability.

The premier said dwindling arable land, smaller sown areas of winter wheat, a warm winter and prolonged drought had negatively impacted the country's agricultural production.

Source: Xinhua