China has invested 49.5 billion yuan (about US$5.96 billion) from the central government and 2.9 billion yuan from local governments in the protection of forests across the country since 1998.

The figure was disclosed by an official from the State Administration of Forestry at a recent international symposium here on the protection and development of forests.

The program was launched five years ago, when catastrophic floods devastated many parts of the country and caused huge losses of lives and property.

The government scheme has been well implemented in northeast China and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, where China's major forests and lumbering companies are located, covering 95.3 million ha of forests, according to the official.

So far, in these areas, the annual output of lumber has been reduced to 10.94 million cubic meters, from 18.53 million cubic meters in 1997.

The lumber companies now employ 193,000 people to take care of the forests, compared with 32,000 in the past.

The UNDP has launched a program, with a donation of one million US dollars, to assist China with forestry technology. At the same time, US$1.5 million has come from other foreign sources for the same purpose.

Edited by chief editor Li Guixiang.