China moves to aid rural tourism recovery

BEIJING - China has been taking multiple measures, including favorable policies and financial aids, to boost the recovery and further development of rural tourism as part of efforts to promote the resumption of work and production, an official said on Sunday.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism has issued a circular on accelerating the recovery of rural tourism while maintaining regular COVID-19 containment, with measures such as a call for greater efforts in infrastructure construction, and launching new tourism routes to support the industry's development, said Shan Gangxin, deputy head of the ministry's resource development department, at a press conference.

The ministry has also been deepening its cooperation with banks concerning financial assistance for the industry.

The Agricultural Bank of China has issued 15 billion yuan (about $2.2 billion) in relevant loans for rural tourism to 1,000 key villages where tourism is a major source of locals' income, Shan said.

The official said loan investments for tourism development in the country's most impoverished areas have grown significantly compared with earlier this year, reaching 3.4 billion yuan so far.