Item from May 3, 1989, in China Daily: China yesterday signed an agreement with the Asian Development Bank for a $39.7 million loan to improve the transportation of coal.

The funds will be used to construct a 44-kilometer railway line in Lyuliang, Shanxi province, according to the bank.

Since China joined the Asian Development Bank in 1986, the country has received $36.3 billion in loans from the organization for more than 1,100 projects involving infrastructure, environment, agriculture and education, according to a report released by the bank last month.

In recent years, cooperation between the two has focused on the Chinese government's reform agenda that includes support for environmental programs.

In December, the ADB approved a loan of nearly $500 million for a green-financing platform targeting Beijing, Tianjin and the provinces of Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Shanxi, Liaoning and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

The platform - the first of its kind in the region - will mobilize domestic financing for many sectors, including energy, transportation and agriculture to improve air quality.

In 2015, the ADB approved a loan of $300 million for regulatory reform in Hebei province, which has the worst air pollution in the country.