Go-west campaign's first two years declared successful
( 2002-02-20 10:55 ) (1 )

China's go-west campaign will forge ahead with building infrastructure, improving ecological environment and fostering the influx of trained people this year in the wake of its success to date.

Officials said the campaign has achieved essential progress in infrastructure and improvement of the ecological environment in the past two years.

Go-west has had a great start and boosted the economy in western regions, according to an official who works under the State Council in charge of the campaign.

Since 2000, the government has increased its investment in infrastructure construction in the western regions.

A series of major projects were started in the past two years, including building railway lines across the Tibet Autonomous Region, and completing networks to send electricity and natural gas from the west to the east.

The protection of the ecological environment has also been strengthened.

By the end of last year, 1.24 million hectares of cultivated land had been restored to forests, and 1.09 million hectares of new forests had taken shape.

Projects, such as restoring natural forests and treating sources of water, have been successful.

This year, the campaign aims to strengthen infrastructure construction in the countryside in the western regions, so that every county can use electricity, every village can enjoy radio and television broadcasts, and every family has the duty of restoring cultivated land to forest, the official said.

The training of experts is also listed in the working plan, so as to boost the development of education and science and technology in the west.

Public servants in the west will have more opportunities to learn advanced management and exchange experience with their counterparts in other parts of the country, according to the plan.

School facilities, health equipment and public cultural facilities in poor areas are also expected to be improved.

Also, western regions are encouraged to make full use of abundant resources and to prevent industrial pollution and redundant investment.