World Bank to give $1.5 billion loan to China for next 5 years: Report

BEIJING: The World Bank will extend USD 1.5 billion in loans to China every year, over the next five years, a news report said here today.

The loans will be used to support transportation, environmental protection, natural resource management, rural poverty alleviation and renewable energy projects, Rachel Kyte, the bank's vice president of sustainable development, was quoted as saying by state news agency Xinhua.

She said the bank will also provide policy suggestions and loans for China to help promote the development of the country's cultural industry.

Since 1993, the bank has issued USD 260 million in loans to the country to finance cultural heritage protection projects, Kyte said.

The bank has thus far granted USD 49.15 billion in loans to support 337 projects in China since 1981, with 73 projects currently underway, Xinhua reported.