China Encourages Overseas Scholars To Return 　　Overseas Chinese scholars and students who have returned to the homeland have made great contributions to the country's development, since the reform and opening up policy was introduced in 1978. 　　"By the end of last year, a total of 320,000 Chinese scholars and students had pursued their studies in foreign countries, of which 100,000 have returned and are playing an important role in many sectors," said Wei Yu, vice-minister of Education, today at a national conference focusing on the subject. 　　Wei explained that the Chinese government supports scholars and students to study abroad and encourages them to return home when they have completed studying. At the same time, it does allow them to choose whether to stay abroad or return. "But the emphasis is on encouraging scholars to return," stressed Wei. 　　She also said that more and more overseas scholars and students are choosing to return and this has shown an annual growth rate of 13 percent. 　　Statistics from the Ministry of Education show that over 50 percent of presidents and vice presidents of the 44 colleges under the Ministry once studied abroad. 　　Since 1996, the Ministry of Education has also given financial support to 1,100 overseas scholars to help them carry out academic researches in China. 　　This year, about 148 overseas Chinese scholars will take teaching positions in key universities in China. They will receive an annual salary of 100,000 yuan from a special fund by the Ministry of Education. HomeNews 1999-02-04 Page5 Full Story in Chinese