China plans to build 300 new museums in the next five years to fully display the costumes and culture of various ethnic groups of the country, a senior cultural official has disclosed.

"We plan to build at least one museum for each of China's 55 ethnic groups to display different culture of ethnic groups. Building of private museums are encouraged, said Shan Jixiang, head of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage.

Currently, China has more than 2,300 museums, housing 20 million cultural relics. These museums have hosted 10,000 exhibitions so far this year, attracting more than 150 million visitors.

(Xinhua News Agency December 27, 2005)