Vocational education should play a more prominent role in cultivating high-quality talent and workers who have professional skills and craftsmanship, according to Premier Li Keqiang’s instruction to a meeting held in Beijing on Dec 2.

Efforts should be made to speed up the construction of a modern vocational education system during the 13th Five-Year Plan period, Premier Li said.

To build a group of high-level vocational schools and provide top talents professional techniques and craftsmanship, industry-education integration, school-to-school cooperation, and social participation should be enhanced in vocational education, the Premier added.

Efforts should also be made to integrate vocational education with mass entrepreneurship and innovation and the practices of Made in China 2025 to promote development of new driving forces, employment, poverty reduction, and medium-to-high economic development, he added.

Vice-premier Liu Yandong said at the meeting that since the introduction of the vocational education law 20 years ago, China has established the world’s largest vocational education system and trained large groups of high-quality workers.

Efforts should be made to integrate educational industries, build demonstration education enterprises, and attract social participation, she said.

Vocational education should play a major role in poverty reduction and make sure teenagers in poverty-stricken areas can learn at least one practical technique.