Minister of Construction Wang Guangtao told a national construction conference which ended Tuesday that China needed to effectively develop urbanization with Chinese characteristics in order to resolve issues concerning agriculture, rural areas and farmers.

Urban construction had boomed in recent years, with large cities matching those in developed countries, but living standards in rural areas, especially in central and western areas, still lagged far behind.

Statistics show that the average net income of farmers in 2002 was 2,470 yuan (US$298), while the average disposable income of urban residents exceeded 7,500 yuan (US$906).

Wang said speeding up the urbanization process would boost urban economies and produce more job opportunities for rural residents.

To this end, China must integrate urban development with new industries to help readjust its economic structure and reduce the differences between urban and rural areas, said the minister.

In addition, all cities must advance in harmony with their people, natural resources and the environment. Besides infrastructure and environment construction, all cities and towns in China must develop in a complementary way for common prosperity.

Wang said the urbanization in China would increase the number of cities and urban populations, but also produce vital changes in social and economic structures.

China's urbanization progressed rapidly in recent years, hitting 37.7 percent of the population by the end of 2001, 7 percentage points over that of 1998.

China has 662 cities and 20,358 towns, with an total urban population of 481 million.

(Xinhua News Agency January 7, 2003)