The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has announced that the government will allocate about 62 billion yuan (about 6 billion euros) in rural infrastructure this year.

The funds will cover projects involving road construction, power generation and water conservation as well as poverty reduction and community facilities, CRI Nordic reported.

The commission said the amount was 9 billion yuan (869 million euros) more than budgeted for the previous year. The NDRC has also published a guide for government investment in rural areas for 2007.

This year, the investment will focus more on sectors directly linked to production and living standards, the guide said.

The commission said that the guide was intended to ensure that more investment would be made in the countryside and Western China in order to achieve a balanced development within the country. The guide also aims to bring more social funds to rural areas and encourage more public supervision over government investment.