HEFEI - A series of policies and measures have promoted nine-year compulsory education in urban and rural areas, according to the Hefei Municipal Education Bureau.

By 2015, the provincial capital of East China's Anhui province is expected to meet the goal of balancing local compulsory education --- six years of primary school and three years of junior high school --- and allow urban and rural children to enjoy the same benefits.

Fang Dongling, director of the Hefei Municipal Education Bureau, said education is the top concern of the city's development, and they are giving attention to educational equity in both urban and rural areas, especially in compulsory education.

Previously, educational equity in urban areas was generally better than those in rural areas due to education resources allotment.

In 2009, a three-step strategy providing equal opportunities in schooling was put forward, Fang said. Local departments in education and finance also issued policies to balance educational resources in 2011.

To strengthen the measures, the innovative cooperative "one plus one" mode was used to help weaker schools run better by allowing teachers from stronger schools to offer help. Now, resources in education, which cover education concept and information, are being shared equally in the city.