A new type of touch screen computer system will be installed in about 500 of Shanghai's remote villages this year to make rural life more convenient, Shanghai Agriculture Commission announced yesterday.

The screen is an easy-to-use product that can offer the newest and most helpful information such as agricultural updates, village affairs, expert advice and weather forecasts. It was developed by the Shanghai Agriculture information Corporation and connected with the internet via broadband.

Huandong Village in Pudong District has also released its balance sheet and the incomes of village officials via the touch screens.

Shanghai Qingxi Poultry Egg Corporation received an order of 90,000 kilograms of duck eggs through publishing agricultural product information via the system.

So far, the touch screen systems have been piloted in 88 villages and have received 145,000 visitors. The pilot scheme will be extended to 1,800 villages within three years.

(Shanghai Daily March 20, 2007)