LANZHOU — China is expected to extend its road network in rural areas to 3.95 million km by the end of this year, reaching 99 percent of the country’s towns and 93 percent of villages, Minister of Transportation Yang Chuantang announced on Sept 21.

China will invest 326.5 billion yuan ($51 billion) during its 12th Five-Year-Plan period (2011-2015) on rural road construction, which will bring more than 2.9 million jobs for rural migrant workers, said Yang at a conference in Northwest China’s Gansu province.

About 1 million km of roads will be built or renovated in rural areas and 5,000 villages will be connected to roads during the period, he said.

Some 60 percent of the rural road investment focuses on poverty-stricken areas, he said.