China has made continuous efforts to promote fairness in education and has realized a "historic leap" from a country with a big population to one rich in human resources, Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong said on Tuesday.

"China attaches great importance to the development of education and it has continuously worked for equity in education through improving related laws and policies," Liu said in a keynote speech to the 48th International Conference on Education, organized by UNESCO.

Some 1,500 delegates, including government ministers, experts, representatives of NGOs and UN agencies, are attending the four-day conference, which aims to promote inclusive education through experience sharing.

According to Liu, China has always paid attention to safeguarding the education rights for those who have special needs, especially those who are easily overlooked.

China has also made vigorous efforts to support education in rural areas, eliminating gender disparities in education, protecting the education rights of ethnic minorities, and implementing special education policies in favor of the poor and disabled.

The Chinese government is drafting a 12-year medium- and long-term plan for education reform and development that aims to promote fair, high quality and life-long education, Liu said.

She said the theme of the conference, "Inclusive Education: the Way of the Future," was a show of respect for the education rights of all, and it was in accordance with the requirement of the times and the trends in the future.

She also expressed readiness of the Chinese government to cooperate with other countries in promoting inclusive education around the world.

(Xinhua News Agency November 26, 2008)