The Chinese Academy of Sciences(CAS) will increase the annual funding for the "Light of West China" program, which is aimed at cultivating leading researchers and scientists in western China, from three million yuan to five million yuan (about 60 million US dollars), said CAS vice president Chen Yiyu in Beijing January 21.

He noted that the program is expected to attract more young scientists to work in the western region.

CAS began the "Light of West China" project in 1996 to encourage leading scholars and scientists to go west. The project, covering seven provinces and autonomous regions including Gansu, Qinghai, Xinjiang, Yunnan, Guizhou, Shaanxi, and Sichuan, has helped economic and social development in these areas.

The program, which received 11.8 million yuan from the CAS and three million yuan from local governments, and sponsored 40 young people to pursue doctoral degrees, has been most successful.

Under the program, the CAS will support young scientists at CAS branches in central and eastern China to work two to three years in western China, in a bid to stimulate exchange and cooperation among young scientists.