From the total sum, 100 billion yuan will be used to build 70 key projects in the areas of infrastructure, bio-environment and pillar industries, said Han Xueqi, an official of the Xinjiang Regional Development Planning Commission.

Xinjiang, an arid area, will build a number of key irrigation projects, expand the use of underground water and promote spray, drip and other technologies that save water for farming. It plans to prospect for a total of 50 billion cubic meters of water resources in the coming five years in addition to building water conservation projects for 34 large irrigation areas.

The region will also build six highways and form a highway transportation network which links Xinjiang with Tibet, Gansu and Qinghai provinces and leads to countries in central and western Asia, Han said.

Xinjiang pledged to become China's largest base for producing quality cotton, grapes, tomatoes, fruit and oil and natural gas by 2010.

(People's Daily 09/25/2000)