Poor farmers in the areas struck by a massive earthquake in May last year are facing problems in rebuilding their homes because of financial difficulties, a Chinese official said on Wednesday.

Zhang Ping, minister in charge of the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's chief economic planning body, said some poor people could not get bank loans to have their homes rebuilt because of their tough economic situation and limited incomes.

Zhang's remarks came in a report to the ninth session of the Standing Committee of the 11th National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature.

He reported on reconstruction work after the May 12 magnitude-8.0 earthquake in southwest Sichuan, which left more than 87,000 people dead or missing.

The official called for efforts and forceful measures to take special care of the rebuilding of homes for poverty-stricken households and offer aid to address their financial problems, material and labor shortages.

The reconstruction of rural houses should be completed by the end of this year so as to ensure rural residents could spend the new year in "warm new houses", he said.

(Xinhua News Agency June 24, 2009)