Shaanxi province intends to expand free education to 13 years?- from preschool through high school?- during the new Five-Year Plan period.

"Shaanxi will continue to share benefits with people in the region from its economic development," Lou Qinjian, governor of the western China province, said at the 4th session of the Shaanxi Municipal people's congress on Sunday.

The 13-year free education includes one year of preschool, six years of primary school and six years of junior and senior high school.

The province also intends to raise the level of five universities to among the best in the nation in the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), Lou said.

Shaanxi also announced a plan to better balance public resources in education, health and culture this year.

The expansion of free education to 13 years already has been achieved by many counties in the province, including Shenmu, Huangling and Yijun, Chinese Business View reported.

In addition to Shaanxi, other provinces embracing 13 years of free education are Yunnan and Qinghai. The city of Zhuhai in Guangdong province has had 12 years of free education since 2007, and intends to add preschool in the future.

Wang Simeng contributed to this story.