Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Vice Premiers Li Keqiang and Hui Liangyu have called for more efforts to promote the development of the nation's border regions.

A two-day work conference focusing on the "More Prosperous Frontiers and Better-off People Action" drive concluded here Sunday.

Hui Liangyu joined officials from central government departments and officials from the country's nine border provinces and regions -- Inner Mongolia, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Guangxi, Yunnan, Tibet, Gansu and Xinjiang -- at the meeting.

Public services should be improved and provided equally to people in the border regions, with more efforts being made to improve poverty alleviation work, housing, health and education, Hui said.

Hui also called for better infrastructure, environmental protection, industrial structure adjustment and ethnic unity in the regions.

He also called for the promotion of border trade in the regions to build a more open economy.

China launched the drive in 2000 to support the development of the border regions.

In a written instruction to the conference, Premier Wen called on government departments and officials to learn from the experience of the drive over the past ten years to fix its problems.

He said the drive should be included in future plans for the regions' development over the next five years.

Vice Premier Li Keqiang urged in his written instruction the strengthening of the drive to promote economic and social development in the border regions while improving the livelihoods of the people there.

(Xinhua News Agency November 21, 2010)