The fourth session of the 13th People's Congress of Inner Mongolia autonomous region is held in the capital city of Hohhot. [Photo/people.cn]

North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region achieved remarkable results in ecological and environmental protection during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-20).

The outstanding performance was announced in the 2021 Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Government Work Report, delivered recently by the autonomous region’s chairwoman Bu Xiaolin.

During the past five-year period, Inner Mongolia's establishment of forests and grassland, as well as the desertification land treatment areas ranked first in China.

The forest coverage rate and grassland vegetation coverage increased and the area of desertification and desertified lands reduced substantially.

Cars meander along a highway with lush vegetation on either sides in the once-barren Kubuqi Desert. [Photo/people.cn]

The work to improve and renew the Kubuqi Desert obtained the Habitat Scroll of Honour Award granted by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme and the 13th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification was successfully held in Inner Mongolia in 2017.

Meanwhile, Inner Mongolia has established a succession of eco-friendly mines, industrial parks and factories.

The number of forest parks, wetland parks and geology parks in Inner Mongolia has reached 372.

In 2019, the value of ecological products from Inner Mongolia was worth 4.48 trillion yuan ($672 billion), an increase of 13.8 percent over 2015.

Sheep graze in grassland that was once a sand-covered expanse of the Moawusu Desert. [Photo/Inner Mongolia Daily]