China Mobile, the world's largest telecom carrier by subscribers, is dedicating 100 million yuan to establish the China Mobile Charity Foundation, the first private foundation of a Chinese telecom carrier.

The first major project to be sponsored by the foundation is an education program in arid regions of central and western China.

Some 35 million yuan will be spent to build libraries, buy computers and train school headmasters, the company said.

The foundation is dedicated to charitable programs for disaster relief, education, environmental protection and helping disadvantaged groups, Zhang Chunjiang, vice president of State-owned China Mobile, said.

He said that a private foundation will ensure the company's charity initiatives remain professional and sustainable.

Zhang said China Mobile already has a long history of contributions to charity and disaster relief.

In the quake-shaken Sichuan province last year, the wireless telecommunications giant donated 45 million yuan to rebuild a middle school.

Li Bing Middle School, accommodating 2,700 students, is the largest middle school in Dujiangyan city. In September, the school reopened for the fall semester.

Many other schools damaged during the 2008 Sichuan earthquake also received donations from China Mobile, including primary schools in Jiangyou and Shifang.

In central China's Henan province, Feng Xiuxia and her classmates heard on a radio report that China Mobile helped rural schools set up computer rooms for distance education and Internet access. Feng wrote a letter to China Mobile.

"We dream of having a computer to learn advanced sciences and arts in the classroom. Deng Xiaoping said this century is the information era, and the young kids are the master of this time," she wrote. "We want to learn more and contribute more in the future. Please help us realize our dreams."

The letter reached Yuan Jianguo, general manager of the telecom carrier's Henan branch.

Yuan, who was born to a rural family, knows well how children from the countryside yearn for better education opportunities. Yuan and his colleagues visited Feng's school and helped them install a computer room.

Now Feng and her classmates, as well as more than 10,000 students at about 200 schools in Henan province, can learn about the outside world from inside their new computer rooms, thanks to support from China Mobile.

Lin Xiuhong is a primary school teacher in a small county in Anhui province that received library support from China Mobile. Her son attends the same school where she teaches Chinese.

"On the first day, my son borrowed Robinson Crusoe, Little Golden Horse and How the Steel was Tempered; I borrowed Jane Eyre, Education of Love and a set of Encyclopedia for Kids," Lin said.

"Thanks to the library, my life and the life of my son have become more colorful," she said.

By the end of 2008, China Mobile had sponsored 135 schools. Schools were renovated, and teaching facilities were added.

Supporting education in less developed areas will help create equal education opportunities, said Zhang Baoqing, director of the China Education Development Foundation.

China Mobile also sponsored headmaster-training programs in 12 provinces. More than 350 headmasters of primary and middle schools received a wide range of training on subjects ranging from management to teenage psychology.

Disaster relief and psychological consulting courses were designed for educators from Sichuan province. Environmental awareness courses were introduced to headmasters from Yunnan province.

The training emphasized interaction and involvement. In Gansu province, trainees also participated in the drafting of training guidelines.

Wang Jianzhou, president of China Mobile, said the company attached great importance to improving educational conditions in poor regions. Education will be a major priority of the company's charitable works, he said.

Another major concern of the company is the fight against HIV/AIDS.

"We hope every orphan whose parents were infected with HIV/AIDS can enjoy a warm home," Wang said.

The company set up a special charity foundation named Warm China 12.1 and launched a campaign to help these orphans.

The special foundation will offer financial aid to improve the livelihood of orphans and help in the search for qualified families to adopt them.

To facilitate adoption, the foundation will assist the adopting families financially and provide training on adopting children. A special website will be established to allow the exchange of adoption information and experiences.

"With all these efforts, we hope these orphans will grow up healthy, just like other kids," said Mo Wenxiu, director of the Warm China 12.1 project.