URUMQI, June 2 (Xinhua) -- China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has realized the full coverage of free pre-school education in rural areas with the continuous increase of educational investment, according to a press conference held on Monday.

Xinjiang has invested heavily in the construction, renovation and expansion of 4,408 kindergartens in rural areas, according to the press conference.

At present, all the pre-school children aged 4 to 6 in the autonomous region are receiving pre-school education in kindergartens, and can enjoy free lunches, snacks and fruits.

In 2019, Xinjiang spent 86.31 billion yuan (about 12.15 billion U.S. dollars) on education in the general public budget, a year-on-year increase of about 4.77 billion yuan or 5.85 percent, said local authorities.

Since 2017, the autonomous region has invested more than 29 billion yuan in student financial aid. Enditem