Chinese authorities have announced great strides in the effort to boost the country's water conservation capacity. 

The State Council said Thursday that the construction on key projects was advancing smoothly nationwide. Authorities confirmed that 132 projects have been commenced, with a total investment in construction of over one trillion yuan (0.15 trillion U.S. dollars). The government said these projects have played an important role in national strategies around economic growth and poverty alleviation. 

A group of landmark projects have been commenced in succession and are now under construction, including the Yangtze River to Huaihe River Water Division Project and Central Yunnan Water Diversion Project, among others. In the meantime, 23 key water conservation projects have been completed one after another, effectively improving the water security capability of the basin area.

"We have made the decision and deployment to speed up 172 key water conservation projects. Generally speaking, we will make every effort to put all projects into construction by the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020). We will ensure that most of the key water projects are completed and play a great role in improving flood and drought prevention and control by 2025," said Wang Annan, chief planner of the Ministry of Water Resources.