NYINGCHI -- China's minorities authority on Wednesday called for more support and aid for the development of the Xinjiang and Tibet autonomous regions.

"Safeguarding ethnic unity and stability in Xinjiang and Tibet is important to China's national unity and border defense," Wang Zhengwei, head of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission, said at a meeting on relevant work.

He called on relevant authorities to give more help to the two regions and make them more capable of handling emergencies, cracking down on separatists and safeguarding ethnic stability.

Wang said the commission helped raise nearly 3 billion yuan (about $486 million) in the past three years for the two less-developed regions, home to most Tibetans and Uygur in China.

The money was used mainly to improve housing, the environment, water and electricity supplies, as well as the protection of ethnic relics in the regions, Wang said.

The commission also contributed to education in the regions.

Wang promised to focus on improving people's well-being and to win more support of people in the regions.

Local ethnic affairs authorities must go deep into the grassroots and listen to their needs in areas like education, medical care and employment.