Fujian provincial government officials headed by Yu Weiguo (left, second), Party chief of the Fujian CPC standing committee, and Governor Tang Dengjie (left, third) participate in a tree-planting event in Fuzhou, the capital city on March 26. [Photo/Fujian Daily]

Fujian is set to step up its efforts in afforestation as part of its broad push to better residents' living environment and construct itself into an "eco-province", according to Yu Weiguo, Party chief of the Fujian CPC standing committee.

Yu made the remarks Monday while taking part in a voluntary tree-planting campaign in Fuzhou, the capital city.

President Xi Jinping proposed the strategic idea of building Fujian into an "eco-province" during his tenure in Fujian, and the province has been following the philosophy ever since, he noted.

According to Yu, the government's long commitment to afforestation and ecological civilization construction has achieved remarkable results.

Official data show that Fujian's forest coverage ratio soared to 65.95 percent in 2017 and continued to lead among the country's provinces and regions.

Six cities like Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Longyan and Sanming in the province have been designated as national level "forest cities" owing to their high afforestation ratios.

The greening figure for its urban area also topped 43 percent, which is equal to 13 square meters per resident.

Fujian, not resting on its laurels, intends to continue to safeguard its sound ecological environment and maintain its upper hand over other areas in China, according to Yu.

In a bid to achieve the goal, "we shall uphold the principle that clear waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, stick to the road of green development and deepen national ecological conservation pilot zone construction," he pledged.

Fujian was officially designated as a national ecological conservation pilot zone in 2016, the first one in the country.