Rural poor to get more web access

SHANGHAI - China will provide its underprivileged residents with greater access to the Internet by enhancing information technology services in rural areas, a senior government official said on Saturday.

In an address to the 2010 Global City Informatization Forum, China's Minister of Science and Technology Wan Gang said the priority for information technology service will be given to rural areas.

"The 'digital gap' between urban and rural China needs to be further bridged," he said. The information network will help to push up levels of rural production, healthcare and education.