The Chinese government has strengthened protection of children left behind by parents who have migrated to work in cities, or those in poor areas, amid the country's battle against poverty, a senior official said Monday.

In 2019, the Ministry of Civil Affairs for the first time set aside 400 million yuan (58 million US dollars) for children's protection from the central assistance fund for people with financial difficulties, said Ni Chunxia, deputy director of the ministry's child welfare department, at a press conference.

The fund can be used to collect evidence on those in need of rescue, evaluate guardianship, and conduct follow-up studies and visits for needy children, especially those in impoverished areas, according to Ni.

The department has also directed 70 percent of assistance programs provided by children's social organizations to poor regions over the past two years.

In addition, the ministry will offer more than 1.4 million yuan to enable training of personnel in charge of children's work in 22 provincial-level areas in the less-developed central and western regions, Ni said.