BEIJING — Poverty reduction and the improvement of the livelihoods of people in developing countries has been the main feature of China’s assistance to other nations, Commerce Ministry spokesman Shen Danyang said on Dec 16.

Nearly 80 percent of China’s foreign aid between 2010 and 2012 went to areas including poverty reduction, education, hygiene, sports, culture, transportation as well as infrastructure, Shen said at a regular monthly news conference held by the ministry.

He said China took recipient nations’ development strategies into consideration and prioritized suggestions from the countries themselves.

“China’s decision on foreign aid projects adheres to strict standards,” Shen said, refuting recent reports that China’s foreign aid projects were disproportionately in favor of leaders’ hometowns in recipient countries.

Shen added that China’s foreign aid projects were open and transparent, with relevant data updated annually on the commerce and finance ministries websites. Meanwhile, aid projects are also open to public scrutiny in recipient nations.