Fourteen provinces in western China has established an agricultural information demonstration network to promote modern agricultural production, said the Ministry of Information Industry on Saturday.

Officials with the ministry said these demonstration projects were part of China's national agricultural information service network which is still under construction.

The ministry said new information technology is playing an important role in western China to improve local agricultural production and narrow the "digital gap" with the east.

According to the ministry, an Internet agricultural experts system has been promoted in more than 1,000 towns of Sichuan Province, which has helped plant over five million mu (about 330,000 hectares) high-yield corps and bring local farmers a total of over 80 million yuan (US$9.9 million) additional income.

The ministry said currently about 200 agricultural information technology demonstration projects have been established across China, making the Internet an effective support to China's modern agricultural progress.

(Xinhua News Agency February 5, 2006)