GUIYANG, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang urged greater efforts to alleviate poverty and preserve the environment in southwest China's Guizhou Province.

Wang made the remarks during a two-day inspection tour to the province that ended on Tuesday. He visited impoverished villages and exchanged views with local officials and villagers.

Greater financial support should be given to the needy to resolve their problems, Wang said, urging local authorities to step up the building of infrastructure.

Despite abundant water resources in Guizhou, water engineering is a prominent concern, Wang said, calling for the speeding up of water conservancy project construction.

He also called on local officials to innovate poverty alleviation measures by encouraging participation of individuals and enterprises.

Efforts should be made to leverage markets in order to optimize resource allocation in poverty-stricken regions, he added.