Chinese government will invest about 62 billion yuan (US$8.16 billion) in rural infrastructure this year, the National Development and Reform Commission has announced.

The investment would target projects involving road construction, power generation and water conservancy, and also poverty reduction and community facilities, according to the commission.

The sum is 9 billion yuan more than budgeted for the previous year, said the commission in a guide for government investment in rural areas for 2007.

The guide said the central government had invested more than 60 billion yuan in the countryside in 2006, and more than 36 billion yuan were channeled to grain production, education, sanitation and poverty reduction, which are directly linked to farmers production and living standards.

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The country's grain output reached 497.46 million tons in 2006, an increase of 13.44 million tons, according to the commission.

The central government would put more investment of the 62 billion yuan into sectors directly linked to production and living standards, according to the investment guide.

And about 10 billion yuan would be devoted to the modernization of the agricultural sector this year.

The commission said the guide was intended to ensure more investment would be made in the countryside and western China with a view to achieving balanced development within the country.

The guide is also aimed at bringing more social funds to rural areas and encouraging public supervision over government investment.

The commission published the investment guide for the first time in 2006.

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