China's top government officials this month have focused on the construction of affordable housing, underscoring the urgency to address the dire living needs of city dwellers amid rocketing property prices and high rental fees.

Vice Premier Li Keqiang said that affordable housing is designed to help address the housing issue of low and middle-income people and is an important part in building the nation's social safety net.

"The nation must push forward the construction of affordable housing on a massive scale, speed up the renovation of run-down areas and construct more public rental housing," Li said during a meeting with top provincial leaders Wednesday.

China's affordable housing program includes government-subsidized low-rent housing for the most financially challenged residents, public rental houses for those middle-income earners who cannot purchase a house in cities, and upgrades of urban slums.

Li's call came after the State Council, the cabinet, held an executive meeting one week ago that urged more support for affordable housing construction while continuing government tightening measures to cool the property market.

"The central government, as well as the local governments, should expand financial support to the sector while also attracting more social capital investment," Li said.

He also said land supply for affordable housing construction must be guaranteed.

China's top land authority said Wednesday that land supply for the nation's affordable housing reached 16,477 hectares in the first half of the year, which was up 24 percent from the same period in 2010.

The total land supply for residential housing reached nearly 57,407 hectares, representing a 2-percent increase year-on-year, according to the Ministry of Land and Resources.

Data shows that by the end of June, construction had started on more than 5 million, or over half of the nation's planned affordable housing units. The government expects that construction of nearly 4 million units will be completed within the year.

China plans to start building 10 million affordable housing units this year. Li told local government leaders that efforts must be made to ensure this target is achieved.

He also stressed housing quality, adding that central government departments will soon launch a campaign to check the safety and quality of affordable housing.

With the completion of more affordable housing, a fair method of allocating such houses must be ensured so that those with the greatest need can get them. Li said a mechanism must be built to ensure openness and transparency.

Further, he advised property developers to sell smaller houses to meet the market demand for cheaper housing, while speculative investment in the property market should be curbed.

The State Council last week also ordered local governments to strictly implement housing price controls. Differentiated housing-loan rates, property taxes in some cities, and house purchase limits should be continued to restrain speculative purchases.