Beijing, Jan 6 (IANS): China's welfare lottery sales hit a record 151 billion yuan (about $24 billion) in 2012, up 18 percent year on year, the country's civil affairs ministry announced Sunday.

Lottery sales raised more than 46.4 billion yuan for public welfare funding last year, Xinhua quoted the ministry in a press release.

Half of the country's public welfare funds go to China's treasury, while the other half is distributed among local governments across the country. Funds are then allocated to social welfare programmes and charities.

The aggregate sales volume of the welfare lottery has exceeded 787.6 billion yuan since it commenced in 1987, and over 253 billion yuan in public welfare funds have benefited hundreds of millions of people around the country, the release said.

According to the country's Regulations on Lottery Management, money raised through lotteries is divided into three parts: the jackpot, lottery management fees and public lottery funds.