China invests 54 mln USD in Tibet's cultural facilities in past 5 years

China's central government and the regional government of Tibet spent 340 million yuan (53.6 million U.S. Dollars) on Tibet's cultural facilities in the past five years, according to new figures released by the region's department of culture Thursday. The amount was six times more than the total investment made into the region's cultural facility building from 2000 to 2005, said Nyima Cering, head of the region's department of culture. The money helped fund 31 county-level cultural centers and 149 township-level cultural stations which opened to the public free of charge between the start of 2005 and the end of 2010, said Cering. Tibet has also raised subsidies to civil art troupes in a bid to engage them in more shows and performances in rural parts of the southwestern autonomous region, said Cering. Every year between 2005 and 2010, art troupes in Tibet held 1,200 performances and entertained 1.5 million audience members, said Cering. Chen Quanguo, secretary of Tibetan regional committee of the Communist Party of China, said Tibet plans to set up cultural centers, cinemas, and large book stores in every county within two or three years. Newspapers, radios, and television sets will also be present in every Tibetan temple in order to promote advanced cultures there, said Chen.