BEIJING - China will increase government-offered scholarships in order to encourage more foreign students to study in the country, Minister of Education Yuan Guiren said Thursday.

Yuan said at a press conference that there are currently about 300,000 foreign students studying in China, 23,000 of whom have received scholarships provided by the Chinese government.

"The number of scholarship recipients is expected to reach 50,000 in a few years," Yuan said.

Chinese universities have arranged Chinese language lessons, offered courses taught in English and organized tours around China to help foreign students understand the country, he said.

More policies to attract foreign students will be introduced, Yuan said.

Nearly 2.2 million foreigners studied in China from 1978 to 2011, according to official statistics.

China also welcomes overseas universities to set up joint institutions and educational exchange programs with Chinese universities, Yuan said.

China currently has about 1,500 Sino-foreign joint institutions and programs, including Shanghai New York University, Wenzhou Kean University and Kunshan Duke University, he said.