Highlights of news conference of the Ministry of Finance

Poverty alleviation fund sees another big increase: Cheng Lihua

China will continue to keep poverty alleviation at the top of its agenda, allocating 126.1 billion yuan in special funds, up 18.9 percent year-on-year, said Vice-Minister of Finance Cheng Lihua, who added this is the fourth straight year the fund has increased by 20 billion yuan.

Cheng said China will further optimize fund allocation in different sectors, focusing on compulsory education, basic medical care and meeting housing and drinking water needs in poverty-stricken areas, while allocating more funds to extremely poor regions.

At the same time, the government will be more transparent in allocating and using funds and improve mechanisms to prevent poverty alleviation funds from misuse and embezzlement, Cheng said.