BEIJING, Jan. 18 (Xinhuanet) -- The Ministry of Science and Technology will inject more funds into research and development of technical standards, an official with the ministry said here Tuesday.

Xu Jianguo, vice director of the ministry's development and planning department, said that enterprises are encouraged to get involved in making national and international technical standards.

The ministry launched the research and development program in 2002 with a total fund of nearly 200 million yuan (24 million US dollars) and more than 2,100 scientists and experts involved.

The scientists and experts have already completed national standards for environmental protection signs, trace element examination, textile safety and key technologies on broadband local area network and urban public graphics.

Meanwhile, Xu said, they are working on the establishment of 29 international standards.

The research and development program focuses on strategic studies on technical standards, introduction of new national technical standards concerning high technologies, public safety, social benefits and other needed areas, as well as examination methods for those standards.

In 2002, 71 percent of Chinese exporters and 39 percent of their exported goods were faced with technical barriers to trade from foreign countries, causing them to lose 17 billion US dollarsin goods value.