Panel reshuffled to spur private education

A governmental panel has agreed to reshuffle its member departments and the way it convenes to better help spur the growth of privately funded education and better regulate cram schools.

The General Office of the State Council approved adjusting the functions and member units of the interministerial joint meeting system on private education, according to a circular released on Friday.

Under the leadership of the State Council, the joint meeting system should coordinate efforts to push forward the reform of privately funded education, regulate after-school training institutions and extend advanced practice and experiences.

Led by the Ministry of Education, the joint meeting system consists of 20 departments, including the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, the Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission and the National Development and Reform Commission.

A senior official with the Ministry of Education will serve as the convener, and the conference’s office will work with the ministry to undertake daily tasks.

The circular also specifies system rules regarding the convening of meetings, the submitting of reports, the studying of issues and risks and the dispatching of joint work groups.

Departments involved should actively take on related work and form a long-term working mechanism, the circular stated.