BEIJING — China's information and communication industry has maintained robust expansion over the past decade, with its telecom revenue rising to 1.47 trillion yuan (about $215.97 billion) in 2021 from 1.08 trillion yuan in 2012, an official said on Aug 19.

The number of internet users reached 1.032 billion in 2021, up 83 percent from 2012, while the number of mobile apps has reached 2.32 million, said Xie Cun, an official with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, adding that China has built the world's largest optical fiber and mobile broadband networks.

From 2012 to 2021, China's telecommunication infrastructure has achieved leapfrog development, and the "digital divide" between urban and rural areas has been remarkably reduced, the official said.

In the next step, the country will further consolidate the foundation for the development of the information and communication industry, cultivate new growth drivers and enable the digital transformation of traditional industries, Xie said.