(7) Increasing Input into Social Services in Ethnic Autonomous Areas

    The state has increased input into health services in ethnic autonomous areas, to raise the level of medical care for the people of those areas. In 2003, the central government appropriated special funds totaling 1.37 billion yuan for health services in Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Guangxi, Ningxia and Tibet autonomous regions, which covered such aspects as public health, basic rural health facilities, specialized hospitals, rural cooperative medical services and control of serious diseases. In 1998, the Chinese government launched a project to give every village access to radio and TV broadcasts, providing special-purpose subsidies to key counties for national poverty-alleviation and development in the central and western regions, which greatly promoted the development of radio, film and TV services in ethnic minority areas. By the end of 2003, with subsidies totaling 450 million yuan, over 70 million villagers in 117,345 administrative villages had gained access to radio and TV broadcasts. The project covered 54,365 administrative villages in Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Guangxi, Ningxia and Tibet autonomous regions, as well as Qinghai, Gansu, Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces, where large numbers of ethnic minority people live. In 2004, the state launched another drive to make villages with more than 50 households where electricity was available to have access to radio and TV. It is estimated that 90,000 more villages will have access to radio and TV in the next two years, among which 59,000 are in ethnic minority areas.

    (8) Assisting Ethnic Autonomous Areas to Open Wider to the Outside World

    The state grants more decision-making power to production enterprises in ethnic autonomous areas in managing foreign trade, encourages them to export local products and implement preferential border trade policies. It encourages and supports the ethnic autonomous areas to give full play to their geographical and cultural advantages in expanding their opening to and cooperation with neighboring countries. In 1992, the Chinese government launched its frontier opening-up strategy, designating 13 open cities and 241 first-grade open ports, and establishing 14 border economic and technological cooperation zones, most of which are in ethnic autonomous areas. (More)