BEIJING - Over 1.3 million Chinese women received interest deductions to get loans to set up their own businesses as of the end of 2011, a senior official from the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) said Thursday.

Under a special assistance program introduced in mid-2009, the government has subsidized interest on small loans issued to eligible female candidates in both rural and urban regions.

The government issued subsidies amounting to 2.3 billion yuan ($365 million), with the total amount of loans offered reaching 55.6 billion yuan, said Song Xiuyan, deputy head of the ACWF.

Song also noted that the businesses in question created over five million jobs for other women.

The federation has organized over 8,000 job fairs for women and helped found about 1,000 local organizations to boost employment and income for women.