The government will throw a 300 million yuan ($40.7 million)
financial lifeline to poor senior high school students in the
western and rural regions, the Ministry of Education said on
Friday.
Up to 300,000 students from 22 provinces, autonomous regions and
municipalities in central and western areas will each receive a
subsidy of 1,000 yuan a year, ministry spokesman, Wang Xuming,
said.
"We will try to make sure the money reaches the students before
the Spring Festival in February," Wang said.
The aid program will be jointly supervised by the ministries of
finance and education, and the China Education Development
Foundation.
Students can apply to determine whether they meet the
requirements to receive the aid.
County-level and provincial education administrative departments
will assess each case for eligibility.
To guarantee fairness and transparency, the names of would-be
beneficiaries will be announced online and on public bulletin board
at schools.
Zhang Baoqing, chairman of the China Education Development
Foundation, said: "The task is extremely urgent and this is the
first time the central subsidy system has covered ordinary senior
high school students.
"The fund distribution method is a trial operation and we need
to closely inspect it to guarantee the funds reach needy students,"
he said.
"This aid policy will be a continuous one and will be gradually
improved."
To bridge the education gap, some local governments have
dedicated their own funds to help poor students wanting further
study.
(China Daily December 22, 2007)