China will work hard to optimize the structure of government expenditures and limit administrative expenses in 2013, Premier Wen Jiabao said in a government work report to the country's top legislature on Tuesday.

The government will continue to give priority to spending on education, medical and health care, social security and other weak areas that are important to people's wellbeing, Wen told about 3,000 legislators at the first session of the 12th National People's Congress.

The government will strictly limit regular expenditures like administrative expenses, and practice thrift, he said.

Investment from the central government budget will be mainly made in government-subsidized housing projects; infrastructure projects related to agriculture, water conservancy and urban utilities networks; social programs and other projects to improve people's wellbeing; and energy conservation, emissions reduction and environmental protection, he said.