Foreign, Private Fund Important for Road Building in Inner MongoliaForeign and private funds have contributed more than 3.3 billion yuan (US$400 million) to road construction over the past five years in the north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.The investment hit 15.3 billion yuan (US$1.8 billion) and over 20 percent came from foreign and private funds between 1996 and 2000, according to a recent work conference of the region. The road project has received loans of about US$150 million from the World Bank and Bank of Asia, said Hao Jiye, director with transportation department of the autonomous region. It also has utilized an investment of 2.1 billion yuan (US$250 million) from non-government enterprises through a BOT (build-operate-transfer) method, covering 511 kilometers of road and five bridges. China has listed road construction as a top priority in its economic development plan and given a shot in the arm of the expressway building. The total mileage of China's expressways reached 16,000 kilometers by the end of last year, ranking third in the world, according to the Ministry of Communications. |
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