According to a recent announcement made by the Poverty Relief Office of the State Council of China, various steps for economic development have been taken to improve the standard of people's living in poverty areas across the country in the past five years, which made it possible to improve the standard of living of 37.43 million people residing there.

The country is paying deep attention to settling the issue of drinking water for the inhabitants in the poverty areas, in particular.

Guizhou Province is pushing forward the reservoir building and a project for laying water pipes while Hebei Province is operating the group for digging wells for the inhabitants in the mountainous areas.

Tibet Autonomous Region is carrying out the project for laying new water pipes while Shaanxi, Gansu, Qinghai, Sichuan and other provinces and autonomous regions in the western areas are pushing ahead with the projects of digging wells and building pumping stations.

The country is massively building "hopeful primary schools" to develop the basic education in the poverty areas.

The number of such schools in operation across the country reached 16,345 as of July last year.

The country worked out a plan to basically remove poverty by 2020 and is intensifying scientific and technological dissemination in the said areas and, at the same time, is stepping up the construction of basic facilities including railways and roads.