22 provincial gov'ts join combat against myopia in China
BEIJING - The first batch of 22 provincial governments in China have joined the national fight against myopia among young Chinese, People's Daily reported Monday.
The governments have signed a letter of responsibility with the Ministry of Education and the National Health Commission (NHC), vowing to cut the overall myopia rate among children and teenagers by at least 0.5 percentage points a year from 2019 to 2023.
For those with higher-than-average myopia rate, the local governments will take measures to reduce the rate by one percentage point a year.
Measures will include reducing the heavy academic burdens and ensuring at least one hour of physical exercise at school.
The move came as the country combats myopia among children and teenagers as the disease has become severe in recent years, with teenagers affected at a younger age.
More than half of Chinese children and teenagers suffered from myopia in 2018, figures from the NHC show.
- Former senior political advisor of Sichuan sentenced to 14 years
- Beijing has undergone dramatic improvements since 2017's revamped development plans
- AI open alliance launched to pool resources for innovation and application
- China's ability to forecast floods boosted by holistic monitoring network
- Shenzhen court sentences 27 for smuggling antimony ingots
- China mandates significant cut in routine tests for primary, secondary school students
