Vice President Zeng Qinghong has urged the use of modern long-distance education as a means to train grass-root cadres and to introduce new agricultural technology to farmers.
He made the remark during an inspection tour in the southwestern province of Guizhou, where rural areas lack adequate educational facilities.
From April 10 to 14, Zeng toured several cities and sites in the province, including the provincial capital of Guiyang.
The Vice President also paid visits to sites and memorials marking the Red Army's hardships in the fight for the people's liberation. He stressed the importance of recalling the great contributions of revolutionary martyrs and carrying on their spirit in order to advance the socialist cause.
Zeng called for in-depth research on how to effectively use long-distance education technology to improve the comprehensive quality of cadres of the Communist Party of China at grass-root levels.
He also said that long-distance education is an effective method to train farmers in agricultural and practical techniques, which will help them to raise their incomes.
(Xinhua News Agency April 15, 2003)