A system to register children in rural areas who have been left behind by their migrant worker parents will be established to ensure they receive compulsory education, the Ministry of Education has said.

China's rapid urbanization has led to a rising number of left-behind children, who have one or both parents working away from home, leaving them to be taken care of by grandparents or other relatives, according to a statement released by the ministry on its website on Thursday.

The number of such children in China stands at 22 million, the statement said.