China allocates more funds for disaster relief work

BEIJING -- The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Emergency Management on Saturday pre-allocated another 1 billion yuan (about 139 million U.S. dollars) as part of the central government's support for disaster relief work in regions affected by flooding.

The finance ministry said in a statement on its website that the new funding will mainly support relief work for residents severely affected by disasters, including those in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and in Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces.

The new funding will ensure that those affected by disasters are resettled properly, that production and life in impacted areas return to normal as soon as possible, and that affected residents are able to return home or move into new homes before the winter, the statement said.

Since the beginning of the flood season, the central government has allocated more than 9.68 billion yuan across various flood prevention and relief funds to disaster-stricken areas, the statement said.

In the statement, the Ministry of Finance ordered provincial-level financial departments to distribute the funds in a timely manner, strengthen the supervision of fund usage, and prioritize the protection of people's lives and property.