More than 1.3 million Chinese women had received interest-deducted 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 on April 19.

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

Last year, the government issued subsidies amounting to 2.3 billion yuan ($365 million), with the total amount of loans offered reaching 55.6 billion yuan ($8.83 billion), said Song Xiuyan, Vice Chairwoman of the ACWF.