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This is NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing. Here is the news.

China will step up work on major water conservation projects, especially in rural areas and central and western regions.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang made the remarks recently during a visit to the Ministry of Water Resources. Li said that governments will accelerate around 200 water conservation programs that have strong economic and social importance.

Li prioritized central and western regions to address regional water issues, which include diversion projects, reservoirs and irrigation.

The premier said that the projects will not only conserve water but attract investment, boost employment, improve the incomes of rural dwellers, bolster industry and even stabilize economic growth.

China will provide clean drinking water to another 60 million people this year. It has guaranteed safe drinking water for some 300 million rural dwellers, students and teachers in the countryside by the end of next year.

Plagued by uneven water resources, floods and droughts, China's water resources per capita are less than 30 percent of the global average.

This is NEWS Plus Special English.

China will strengthen public awareness of Internet security and lawful cyberspace management.

Senior Party leader Liu Yunshan made the remarks at the country's first Cyber Security Week last week.

The Cyber Security Week intends to help the public better understand Internet security risks and enhance their ability to protect themselves.

Liu says that while enjoying the various conveniences the Internet offers, people should see clearly the occasional occurrence of online attacks, frauds and copyright infringements as well as rampant online pornography, gambling, and drug deals; and that despite crackdowns, these issues severely harm national security and people's interests.

Liu urged improved laws and regulations on the management of the Internet and resolute crackdowns on Internet-related crime, and noted that it had become "people's common outcry" to ensure online security and cleanse the online environment.

China's Cyber Security Week falls on the last week of November every year. The event features videos, lectures and contests on online security skills.

You are listening to NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing.

An overwhelming majority of China's wealthy people are likely to send their children abroad for education, with the United States and the U.K. being their first choices.

Some 80 percent of rich people in China have plans to send children abroad, the highest rate in the world. In contrast, Japan has less than 1 percent and Germany has less than 10 percent of its rich having such plans.

The students are getting younger too, and they are being sent abroad by their millionaire parents at an average age of 16.

Ten years ago, China's rich population sent their children mostly to Canada and Australia, because of the large number of members of Chinese communities there; and now, wealthy parents in China have a much broader social network, and can find trusted people almost anywhere in the world and can rest assured when sending their children to any country.

Experts in China say that long time overseas study by the students must surely benefit the globalization of China's economy.

This is NEWS Plus Special English.

The UN Security Council is calling for preparedness by all member states to detect, prevent and respond to suspected cases of Ebola within and across borders after Mali reported Ebola infections.

The Security Council issued the statement at a council debate on Ebola, expressing its concern about the recent Ebola infections in Mali.

The Security Council affirmed the importance of preparedness by all Member States to detect, prevent, respond to and mitigate suspected cases of Ebola within and of bolstering the preparedness of all countries in the region.

The World Health Organization said that Mali has reported several cases of Ebola disease, with six deaths, as of November 20.

The Security Council asked the international community to remain flexible in order to respond quickly to the dynamic needs of Ebola-affected countries as well as new outbreaks.

While the total number of cases continues to rise, the overall rate of increase has begun to slow.

The United Nations will need 1 and a half billion U.S. dollars through to March next year to assist with ending the outbreak, and there is still a shortfall of over 700 million dollars.

You are listening to NEWS Plus Special English. I'm Mark Griffiths in Beijing.

The volume of China's intelligent voice recognition industry will exceed 3 billion yuan; that's almost 500 million U.S. dollars this year, 10 percent of the global market.

The industry has seen sustained rapid growth, hitting 1.7 billion yuan last year, up 96 percent year on year.

Intelligent voice recognition technology is generally used in nine fields: automotive electronics, culture, education, home appliances, information security, the mobile Internet, mobile phones, television, and voice calls.

In practical use, a user can tell a voice recognition remote control device to select a TV channel or switch on or off an air conditioner.

The "smart voice" may play important roles in national defense, anti-terrorism, privacy protection and so on, which is meaningful to the development of China's information technology.