BEIJING — China has launched an initiative to promote the high-quality and well-balanced development of compulsory education in county-level areas across the country, the Ministry of Education said on Dec 1.

According to a directive issued by the ministry, the initiative will be spearheaded by a number of county-level areas in each provincial-level region in the next three to five years before being implemented nationwide.

Under the initiative, mechanisms will be established and improved to allow schools greater autonomy and to help stimulate vitality in their daily operations, the ministry said.

Measures will be rolled out to promote the balanced distribution of teaching resources, and policies will be devised to enhance the education and care of children who do not live with their parents, students with disabilities, and other groups in need, it added.