More care extended to rural children

BEIJING - Chinese rural children are expected to get better care from the government including more nutrient meals, safe school buses and better accommodation facilities.

The information was revealed in a document jointly issued by five agencies of China's central authorities on Thursday, which aimed to strengthen care for and education of rural "left-behind" children, who lived with their grandparents as their parents have migrated to cities for work.

The document called more attention to be paid to the mental health of these children, and urged teachers to keep an eye on the mental health status of such children and actively respond to requests for psychological care.

Personal files should be created for the children to retain their information and allow their personal info to be updated if they obtain a new guardian after their parents leave, it said.

In order to ensure that all school-aged children receive compulsory education and covered by public services, children under 16 should be registered with local administrators, the document said.

It also encouraged all social circles and people from all walks of life to help the "left-behind" children.

The document was jointly issued by the Ministry of Education, All-China Women's Federation, the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League, China National Committee for the Well-being of the Youth and the Central Committee for Comprehensive Social Management.

Currently, China has about 58 million rural children living away from their parents, or 28.29 percent of the total number of rural children.

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