Rural students in Wuhan, capital city of central China's Hubei Province, will enjoy free compulsory
education from 2006, the city government has announced at a work
meeting on education.
The scheme will cater for 432,000 rural students, and it will
involve a total amount of 78 million yuan (US$9.75 million).
In addition, students from poor rural families will be granted
free textbooks. Boarding students will receive subsidies to assist
them in their daily living costs.
Last year, the city allocated 144 million yuan (US$18 million)
to help 410,000 students from poor families and rural areas receive
free compulsory education.
Last December, the State Council made a decision that rural
students in China's relatively backward western region will enjoy
free compulsory education from 2006.
In 2004, China began providing students from poor families free
textbooks and exempted them from paying other school fees.
(Xinhua News Agency January 30, 2006)