China currently has about 1,184 schools of higher vocational education, which enroll more than 3.1 millon students annually, Vice Minister of Education Lu Xin said in Beijing on Sunday.

More than 9 million students are studying in these schools, she said at a conference held to honor the outstanding teachers and headmasters of vocational schools.

The country's schools of secondary vocational education hit 14,000 in number, which enroll 8.1 million students annually, she said, adding the number might be 8.6 million for this year.

Minister of Education Zhou Ji said earlier on Friday that secondary vocational education will have free access this year, in order to greatly promote its development. The policy will be employed firstly in agriculture related majors and for poor students, Zhou said.

But he did not reveal the exact time for the policy to take effect.

(Xinhua News Agency September 14, 2009)