New regulation bans use of money for anything except students' meals in poverty-stricken areas

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education have issued a temporary regulation that requires school cafeterias in rural areas to publish detailed accounts of how government food subsidies for students are spent.

Since the autumn 2011 semester, 26 million students in 680 poverty-stricken counties have been subsidized under a project the State Council launched. Nearly 30 percent of students in rural areas of central and western China are covered by the project, which pays 3 yuan (47 cents) a day per person.