Construction of a group of key projects funded by the central government and governments of local provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions across the country are progressing smoothly in Tibet Autonomous Region, southwestern China.

Of the 117 major projects, financed by the state in the fields of agriculture, animal husbandry, infrastructure, science and technology, education and environmental protection, 40 have been completed and 73 others are under way, according to the regional statistics bureau. Investment involved totaled 13.64 billion yuan (about 1.65 billion US dollars).

Statistics show that 69 of the 70 projects funded by other provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions have been completed at a combined cost of 1.13 billion yuan (some 135 million US dollars).

All these aforementioned aid-Tibet projects were decided by thecentral government in 2001 for the purpose of boosting economic growth in Tibet.

An official with the regional statistics bureau said that construction on these projects played a crucial role in increasingfixed assets investment in the autonomous region in 2003.

Tibet reported fixed assets investment totaling 13.86 billion yuan (1.68 billion US dollars) last year, up 27.2 percent over thesame period of the previous year. Investment went mainly to the sectors of infrastructure development, power and gas production, water conservancy, education, radio, film and TV services.

Private investment reached 1.129 billion yuan (136 million US dollars) in the region last year, more than double the figure for the previous year.

Source: Xinhua