More than 100,000 water storage pits have been built since the launch of a project in 2000 to help poor households in western China.

The scheme, set up by All-China Women's Federation, has benefited about 1.1 million farmers living in 22 provinces and regions.

They each received 1,000-yuan (US$125) subsidy towards the cost of building the pits.

About 1,200 small-sized centralized water supply projects have also been created under the initiative.

Areas in the west of the country suffer some of the worst water shortages in the country because of poor natural and geographical conditions.

Before the scheme was launched, many farmers could only rely on poorly constructed water pits as they could not afford suitable materials, such as concrete.

"The drive to provide water pits to farmer families has not only supplied water for them, but also improved their living standards," said Bao Xiaoping, vice-chairwoman of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Women's Federation.

Qiao Haishi, 37, a farmer living in the region's Maolinzi Village, said that his family could now have baths at home, something they could only dream of before.

"Thanks to the pit from the nationwide drive, we also have better conditions for agricultural production now," he said.

"In 2005, my family made some 5,000 yuan (US$620) by producing vegetables."

Building water storage pits to collect rain water in areas hit by water shortages is the most economical and practical way to improve conditions for farmers, according to experts.

There are still an estimated 20 million people affected by water shortages in western China.

Among the worst hit are about 3 million people living in mountainous areas in Shaanxi, Shanxi and Gansu provinces and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, said Zhang Baotong, an expert on social economic development and director of Shaanxi Economic Development Research Institute.

Liu Shizong, 76, a farmer living in Liuyao Village in Dingbian County, Shaanxi Province, built a small, basic pit about 40 years ago to collect rain and snow, which his family still relies on.

"We drink the water stored in the pit, and if it does not rain for some time, we have to go 28 kilometers to collect water, which is salty and bitter," he said.

Many people in the village do not have enough water to wash their faces or clothes.

More than 80 percent of women there suffer from gynecological diseases because of the poor hygienic conditions caused by the lack of water supplies.

(China Daily May 8, 2006)