BEIJING, Dec 4 (AFP) - Tibetan authorities have adopted a new regulation aimed at attracting foreign investment and using local labour to construct a road network, the official Xinhua news agency reported Wednesday.

The government will provide funds for the construction of major highways, and farmers and shepherds will be required to participate in highway construction near their homes, the agency reported.

The regulation includes favourable tax and land-use policies for investors, including priority in developing real estate, and in exploiting minerals and forestry resources along the highways.

Xinhua said that by 2010, the highways would be of such a standard that they would help Tibet's economic and social development and meet national defense needs.

According to internal documents released by organisations representing Tibetans in exile, the authorities are trying to speed up the integration of the region, one of the poorest in China, to counter the actions of independence groups.

Confrontations between Chinese security forces and followers of the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, are not uncommon in the region.