(File photo: VCG)

GUIYANG, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Southwest China's Guizhou Province will continue investment to guarantee safe drinking water for rural residents.

The investment will reach 4.5 billion yuan ($664 million) this year, and authorities plan to make safe drinking water accessible to all rural population by the end of June.

Guizhou is a mountainous area, with 92.5 percent of its land mountains and hills. A shortage of drinking and irrigation water has made life very difficult there. Beginning in 2013, Guizhou vowed to provide safe water to 11.65 million rural residents in 18,779 villages.

Guizhou will build an additional 60 major water sources this year so that each of its 76 counties will have at least one mid-sized reservoir, according to the provincial government.