More than 500,000 Tibetans have benefited from various projects funded by the Aid Tibet Development Foundation (ATDF) over the past 20 years.

The Tibetan charity group said on Monday that the foundation had provided aid to 658 programs in the autonomous region over the past two decades and benefited more than 100,000 households.

The NGO had raised more than 200 million yuan (about US$27 million) in donations for Tibet ever since the foundation's preparatory committee was established in 1987.

Of the funds, 100 million yuan had been used to treat cataract patients. Through these projects, nearly 20,000 patients had received surgery and regained their sight.

The foundation was formally established in 1992. As a non-governmental, non-profit organization, it aimed to develop the local economy, education, health and technology, among other areas in Tibet and its neighboring provinces. It also strove to make contacts with international friends and overseas Chinese to provide financial help for the area.

(Xinhua News Agency December 18, 2007)