China will endeavor to ensure the educational opportunities of disabled people in the next five years, said a State Council executive meeting in Beijing on Thursday.

 

The educational system for disabled people should be improved in the next five years, guaranteeing the compulsory education of disabled children, and junior or senior education, said the meeting presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao.

 

Governments at different levels are required to press on their work, improving the lives of disabled people in the next five years, said the "Outline of the 11th Five-Year Guidelines for the Disabled in China" deliberated and passed by the meeting.

 

The society should provide more work opportunities for disabled people, enlarging social welfare system for them, the meeting said.

 

More efforts will be taken to help the disabled living in rural areas in the next five years and try to lift the 10 million rural poor disabled people out of poverty and enhancing their incomes, said the meeting.

 

The meeting also asked the public service sectors to provide convenient services for the disabled and called on more social efforts to help them.

 

China has over 60 million disabled people at present.

 

Besides, participants at the meeting also discussed the present situation of the state-owned companies in China and called for pushing forward the reforms of state-owned entities.

 

(Xinhua News Agency May 26, 2006)