Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, March 03, 2002
CPPCC Members Concerned about Illiteracy in China
The Fifth Session of the Ninth National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is to open Sunday afternoon. Participants have showed much concern over the issue of illiteracy in the country.
The Fifth Session of the Ninth National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is to open Sunday afternoon. Participants have showed much concern over the issue of illiteracy in the country.
The CPPCC members have put forward many suggestions on resolving the problem.
The Chinese government attaches great importance to the literacy drive, said sources with the Ministry of Education, adding that eye-catching achievements have been recorded in this regard over the past years.
Statistics show that the illiteracy rate among adults has been reduced to 8.72 percent from 22.23 percent 10 years ago. However, China still has 85.07 million illiterate people, with some 20 million aged between 15 and 50. Some 90 percent of the illiterates are in rural areas.
It is learned that China has made it a priority in the tenth Five-Year Plan period (2001-2005) to wipe out illiteracy among grown-ups and to realize nine-year compulsory education for all children of school age.