BEIJING - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has urged more efforts to modernize agriculture and increase the incomes of farmers to ensure the 2016-2020 period gets off to a good start for the rural sector.

He made the remarks in a written instruction made public Monday.

Agricultural work, especially over spring, is pivotal to the country's economic and social development, the premier said.

He instructed that farmers be guided to adjust the structure of their crops and livestock in line with market demand. Scale of operation in farming should be increased properly, and the sector's efficiency and competitiveness should be improved.

China needs to speed up structural reforms in the agricultural sector to address supply imbalance, Vice Premier Wang Yang told a national meeting on spring farming held from Sunday to Monday.

Rural infrastructure, such as irrigation projects, must be improved and efforts should be made to prepare for floods and droughts, Wang said.