A hundred million Chinese had work injury insurance by November, including 24.73 million migrant workers, the Ministry of Labor and Social Security announced on Thursday.

Coverage had grown an annual average of 18.18 million since the end of 2003 when it was 45.75 million.

China's work injury insurance fund received 10 billion yuan (US$1.28 billion) in revenues in 2006.

In May, the government launched a nationwide, three-year safety program to bring all migrant workers in high risk sectors - including coal mining and construction - under the work injury insurance system.

Work injury insurance covered four million coal miners by November, with all the migrant workers insured in the 103 state-owned key coal mines and other large and medium sized coal mines.

The ministry will continue pushing for wider insurance coverage in the mining, construction, manufacturing and catering sectors in 2007.

A total of 36 million migrant workers will be covered by the work injury insurance in 2007, said an official with the ministry.

(Xinhua News Agency December 29, 2006)