Beijing, China - Sept 23, 2026 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Press conference in progress
2. Press
3. Press conference in progress
4. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Wang Guangyan, Chinese Vice Minister of Education (starting with shot 3/partially overlaid with shot 5):
"Currently, China has established the largest education system with quality in the world, with the levels of education coverage and fairness ranking among the highest globally. China's basic education has reached the average of high-income countries, with the gross enrollment rate for preschool education reaching 92.9 percent, the retention rate for compulsory education standing at 96.1 percent, and the gross enrollment rate for senior secondary education reaching 92 percent. China has fully implemented the 15-minute inter-class break and two-hour comprehensive sports activities daily for primary and junior high school students, and the overall student myopia rate has declined for five consecutive years."
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5. Reporters
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6. Press conference in progress
7. Reporters
8. Press conference in progress
9. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Wang Guangyan, Chinese Vice Minister of Education (starting with shots 7-8):
"The capacity of higher education has been effectively enhanced to serve independent sci-tech innovation and the training of homegrown talent, and we have moved faster in cultivating a large batch of top-tier innovators that are urgently needed by national strategies and industries. Higher education institutions led three fourths of the projects which won the State Natural Science Award, State Technological Invention Award, and State Scientific and Technological Progress Award for the year 2025 in the 'General Projects' category. Vocational education has provided over 70 percent of new high-skilled talent for modern industries. There are now 270 million people who have received higher education in China. The country's international influence in education has been constantly strengthened."
10. Reporters

China now has 270 million people who have received higher education, Vice Minister of Education Wang Guangyan said on Wednesday.

The official made the statement at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office on accelerating efforts during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) to build a leading country in education.

"Currently, China has established the largest education system with quality in the world, with the levels of education coverage and fairness ranking among the highest globally. China's basic education has reached the average of high-income countries, with the gross enrollment rate for preschool education reaching 92.9 percent, the retention rate for compulsory education standing at 96.1 percent, and the gross enrollment rate for senior secondary education reaching 92 percent. China has fully implemented the 15-minute inter-class break and two-hour comprehensive sports activities daily for primary and junior high school students, and the overall student myopia rate has declined for five consecutive years," said the official.

"The capacity of higher education has been effectively enhanced to serve independent sci-tech innovation and the training of homegrown talent, and we have moved faster in cultivating a large batch of top-tier innovators that are urgently needed by national strategies and industries. Higher education institutions led three fourths of the projects which won the State Natural Science Award, State Technological Invention Award, and State Scientific and Technological Progress Award for the year 2025 in the 'General Projects' category. Vocational education has provided over 70 percent of new high-skilled talent for modern industries. There are now 270 million people who have received higher education in China. The country's international influence in education has been constantly strengthened," Wang added.

China has set a goal to build itself into a leading country in education by 2035.