BEIJING, June 3 -- China has established a special fund to offer financial support for the Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program (TSFP), a large-scale afforestation project, amid the country's continuous efforts to fight desertification and restore the ecological environment, according to a circular made public on Monday.

A total of 12 billion yuan (about 1.7 billion U.S. dollars) has been earmarked from this year's central budget for the program, and subsequent funds will be allocated in accordance with needs in the following years, said a statement on the website of the Ministry of Finance (MOF).

Apart from the fund, other measures dedicated to supporting the program include strengthening existing fiscal funding support, channeling social funds into the program, and implementing preferential tax policies, said the circular jointly released by the MOF and the National Development and Reform Commission.

According to the circular, efforts will be made to promote the control of desertification in three key areas, namely, the areas near the meandering bends of the Yellow River, two sandy lands of Horqin and Hunshandake, and the Hexi Corridor-Taklimakan Desert region.

Launched in 1978, the TSFP consists of afforestation in northwest, north and northeast China. Over the years, China has made constant efforts to shore up the ecological barrier in northern China.

At the end of May, during a research trip to north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng urged efforts to fight desertification in the eastern part of the program.

The vice premier stressed the need to focus on key projects, promote the use of effective desert control methods in accordance with local conditions, consolidate and expand the desert control outcomes, and advance ecological industries.