China has succeeded in setting up a national blood bank, a project first launched from early 2002, a spokesperson for the State Development and Reform Commission said Wednesday.

The network involves 29 upgraded provincial blood centers, 289 blood stations at the city or prefecture level and 141 blood banks at county level in western parts of the country.

With a funding support from the central and local governments, the network was established at a cost of 2.25 billion yuan (US$274 million), said the spokesperson.

The network helps the country to improve its quality control capacity in collecting and supplying blood, and cut the transmission of infectious disease through blood transfusions, the spokesperson said.

(Xinhua News Agency May 21, 2003)