Economic growth in eastern and western China is greatly unbalanced. Many children in economically backward areas do not have the chance of going to school. Although the state’s “two exemptions and one subsidy” policy has exempted tuition and other fees for children eligible for compulsory education, yet due to low family income, financial difficulty, poverty in remote mountainous areas, slow academic progress made, failure to complete schooling is the common phenomenon. Ethnic minority children are especially hard hit. The resultant effect of poor education further aggravates poverty in the community and hinders social and economic development

Based on the need for education initiatives in these areas, in 1993 The Amity Foundation inaugurated the “Back to School” project in the central and western regions. The purpose was to provide financial assistance for poor children aged 6 to 18 to enable them to have access to basic and appropriate levels of education. Since the inception of the project, over four hundred thousand students in 13 provinces, 48 counties and 3 autonomous regions have been benefited from this education financing programme.

The Amity Foundation’s “Back to School” project has been acting positively in response to the national policy of “two exemptions and one subsidy” policy; while ensuring that poor children are attending school regularly, it also diverts financial resources to finance living expenses for school children, procurement of educational and instructional equipment. It is hoped that this will help the poverty-stricken areas to improve the living conditions of children in school, improve the quality of learning, and promote comprehensive development for children in poor areas.