URUMQI, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has invested nearly 1.15 billion yuan (about 163 million U.S. dollars) to improve nutrition for rural students in the first half of this year.

The regional education department said Monday that about 1.44 million rural students have benefited from the program, which aims to improve nutrition for rural elementary and middle school students, especially those living in poverty-stricken areas in southern Xinjiang.

Among the beneficiaries, nearly 1.3 million students are from 33 counties and cities in southern Xinjiang, according to the education department.

In order to ensure the nutrition improvement program is fully implemented, experts have been dispatched to impoverished counties to conduct inspections and give guidance, as well as deal with problems including the management of kindergartens' dining halls and the bidding of food materials.

Meanwhile, the region has also made efforts to prevent food safety incidents in schools.