China will accelerate its higher-education development in western regions in the next decade, focusing on improving education quality, a Ministry of Education official said Feb 22.

Zhang Daliang, a ministry official in charge of higher education, told a news conference that by 2020, higher education in western China will be closer to the average level of the whole country.

To realize the goal, a plan will be unveiled soon that will include attracting faculty and strengthening the development of key disciplines. Zhang did not provide a timetable.

In 2012, 6.52 million college students were studying in universities in western China's 12 provinces and the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, a 40.29 percent increase from 2007, according to the ministry.

Meanwhile, another 360,000 graduate students were studying in universities in those regions last year, it said.

jinzhu@chinadaily.com.cn