The People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China told Xinhua Sunday about three quarters of its cadres had been to college or postgraduate schools, 51 percent more than in 1995.

"We have increased the recruitment of well-educated technicians and civil workers," an anonymous source with the General Political Department of the PLA said.

Since China's economic and social transformation in 1978, the priority task of PLA has shifted from preparing for combat to raising the academic levels of its forces, especially the cadres.

The PLA now has 94 academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, China's top two science bodies, said the source. The number of academicians in 1985 was only three.

A total of 177 post-doctoral centers have been built, according to the PLA. There was only one such center in 1985.

The army has signed agreements with 117 colleges across China to train students for military posts. More than 70,000 such students have been enrolled in the past three decades, PLA statistics showed.

The cadres are generally younger than in the past, the average age down 2.8 years from 1978.

"The high-quality personnel team have played an irreplaceable role in major events such as the manned space walk, moon exploration, earthquake relief and disease fighting," said the source.

(Xinhua News Agency January 6, 2009)