China has spent 362.5 billion yuan (about US$45.3 billion) on water conservancy projects in the past five years, according to sources with the Ministry of Water Resources.

An official with the ministry said that the total spending on water conservancy projects in the past five years equals the grosswater conservancy investment during the 1949-2000 period.

Remarkable progress in river harnessing and flood control was achieved, with the country's total river embankment reaching 278,000 km, 8,676 km of which was newly built in the past five years.

In the 2001-2005 period, the central government spent 18.6 billion yuan (about 2.3 billion U.S. dollars) in repairing and consolidating 1,686 dilapidated dams.

Statistics show that upon completion of the repair and consolidation, the country's major dams will improve their annual flood control capability by 5.46 billion cubic meters, and their annual water supply volume will increase 4.34 billion cubic meters.
 
(Xinhua News Agency December 30, 2005)