Fostering high-level talented professionals should be China's key strategy in the era of knowledge-based economy, while talents will be a basic guarantee for technological renovation, economic development and social progress, Vice Premier Li Lanqing said Thursday.
Li made the remarks at the ceremony for the third round of Cheung Kong Scholars Program, a special program jointly established and sponsored by the Ministry of Education (MOE) and Hong Kong entrepreneur Li Ka-shing and his Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings Limited.
The Cheung Kong scholar promotion program consists of efforts to attract leading scientists to Chinese universities and to reward scholars for their outstanding achievements.
So far, 307 scholars have been cited by the program to take professorial or visiting professorial chairs in 64 Chinese universities.
Li congratulated the scholars and encouraged them to work harder to help China achieve its strategic goal of rejuvenating the nation through science and education.
He pointed out that the program will help attract outstanding technological professionals and scientists, and it will speed up the cultivation of talented people in colleges and universities.
He asked related departments and institutions of higher learning to support these scholars.
(Xinhua, Sept. 21, 2000)
