A financial-aid policy set at the joint sponsorship of the Chinese central government and the government of northwestern Xinjiang Autonomous Region is expected to benefit more than 1.73 million school kids whose families are scattering far and wide in the region's 67 needy cities or counties.

According to the local government, those elementary and middle school kids living in need in southern Xinjiang's four autonomous prefectures, counties on the border and farming and livestock breeding areas, will be exempted from tuition fees and textbook expenses latter this year.

This is a measure taken to prevent the students from discontinuing their studies for financial reasons, said local officials.

Some 190 million yuan (US$22.8 million) will be allocated annually to implement the policy with 140 million yuan of subsidies (US$16.9 million) from the central government as fees for textbooks and other teaching materials and the remaining 50 million yuan (US$6.1 million) come from the local governments for paying tuition and relevant fees.