China's government has allocated 100 million yuan (US$14.6 million) to help wheat farmers in areas stricken by drought.

The Ministry of Finance (MOF) said on Friday the emergency fund would help weather an "extremely severe" drought that has plagued north China since the beginning of the winter.

It said the fund would go mainly to the provinces of Hebei, Shanxi, Anhui, Henan, Shandong, Shaanxi and Gansu.

About 119 million mu (7.9 million hectares), or 100 million mu more than the same period last winter, of wheat cropland was threatened by drought in those provinces, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.

The severe drought followed lower than average rain in most parts of northern China. In some areas, rainfall is 70 to 90 percent down on the average winter.

The MOF asked local governments to take strict measures to ensure the fund would be dedicated to anti-drought purposes only.

(Xinhua News Agency January 24, 2009)