06/15/2003
Xinhua

Northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, which has a large Moslem population, launched a month-long plan on June 15 to reduce its number of townships by about 45 percent.

Local officials said that the move was designed to reduce administrative costs, ease financial burdens on local taxpayers, and promote rural economy and urbanization.

Townships with a population of less than 10,000 will be merged with their neighbors.

There are a total of 312 townships in the autonomous region ranging in size from more than 1,000 square kilometers to less than three square kilometers.

Many regions on the Chinese mainland have been streamlining grassroots government organizations in an effort to reduce bureaucracy and save costs.