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The 62 aid-Tibet projects, initiated by the Central Government, and supported
by provinces and municipalities in the hinterland, began in 1994 and were concluded
by 2000. these projects, with a total investment of 4 billion yuan, cover the
whole of Tibet and involve fields closely related to the life and work of Tibetan
people, such as energy (15 projects), transportation and communication infrastructure
facilities (7 projects); industry (6 projects); agriculture and water conservancy
(13 projects); municipal construction, culture, education and medicare (21 projects).
Thirteen out of the 62 projects fall under the categories of agriculture, animal
husbandry, forestry, water conservancy, and grain and oil processing, with a total
investment of 600 million yuan. The Manla Water Control Project is the largest
among the 62 projects. Besides irrigation, it also generates other benefits, including
power generation and flood prevention. The construction of the Manla Water Control
Project has regulated the irrigation of 100,000 hectares of farmland in the Nyang
Qu River Valley, and increased irrigation area by 40,000 hectares of grassland
and forests, thereby enhancing Tibet's food production potential. The agriculture
popularization system program, aided by the Ministry of Agriculture, has laid
a solid foundation for developing advantageous, high-yield, and high efficient
agriculture, as well as for regulating the internal structure of agriculture,
and accelerating the agricultural development based on scientific and technological
progress in Tibet. Its high-quality rape processing project makes Tibet self-sufficient
in edible oil supply and enables it to carry out in-depth development of its agricultural
economy. The northwestern Tibet cashmere base, constructed with the aid of the
Ministry of Agriculture, has greatly spurred the development of counties engaged
in animal husbandry through constructing infrastructure facilities, training herdsmen,
establishing a purchase-sale system, and developing high quality white cashmere,
which has won first prize at the national agriculture exposition. Energy, transportation,
and post and telecommunications infrastructure facilities are important factors
as regards Tibet's economic development, and are, therefore, key fields for investment.
Upon completion of the 62 projects, the installed capacity of hydroelectric generation
was increased by 30,000 kilowatts, with an annual increase of generated energy
of 166 million kilowatts/hour, and the telephone exchange capacity increased by
30,000 lines. The industrial development has provided more employment opportunities,
consequently improving Tibetan living standards. The capacity of urban daily water
supply increased by 16,000 tons, and hospital beds increased by 400, further guaranteeing
local people's living standards, as well as their medical and health services.
The completion of the educational program has increased middle school enrollment
by 4,900 students annually. The 62 projects full take in to account Tibetan people's
living environment. The construction of broadcasting and television receiving
stations at township level involved 493 townships and 57 highway maintenance squads.
At present, over 20 townships use a solar-powered broadcasting receiving system,
each receiving station covers a radiation area of 7 kilometers. Xigaze is the
second largest city in Tibet Autonomous Region, and seriously lacked potable water
for a long period of time. Since the water supply project, aided by Shanghai Municipality,
was constructed and put into operation, people have had convenient access to tap
water. Many projects have now begun to bring benefits to people. The optical cables
laid between Shannan and Xigaze, and between Lhasa and Xigaze also draw the counties
along the way into the optical cable telecommunication network. The establishment
of five middle schools, including the Xigaze No. 2 Middle School, and the Lhair
County Middle School, greatly relieved the demands on school enrollment in these
areas. Apart from finance, the 62 projects also included expertise aid. The state
and interior provinces sent numerous technological staff to work in Tibet and
help with the training of Tibetan technicians and management personnel. |
