China Makes Progress in Alleviating Urban PovertyChina has scored remarkable success in fighting against urban poverty and improving polluted environment in the course of urban development and urbanization, a senior official said on June 26.Lou Jiwei, vice minister of finance, made the remark at the opening ceremony of a mayor forum held by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Shanghai. The Chinese government has made great effort to solve urban poverty problem over the past two years, Lou said. So far, China's 668 cities and 1,638 counties have established basic living allowance systems, Lou added. Besides, the government also established various social security systems to ensure the basic living standard of the laid- off workers and the unemployed people, he added. China has strengthened cooperation with the ADB since joining the organization. By the end of April, the ADB has issued loans totaling 9.5 billion U.S. dollars to China. The funds go to agriculture, forestry, water-conservancy and environmental protection projects. Mayors of about sixty cities and deputies from non-governmental organizations in the Asia-Pacific region take part in the four-day event. |
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