BEIJING, April 2 -- China's Ministry of Education on Thursday said the country has added some 358,000 new teachers to rural primary and middle schools in the past year.

In a report on the "balanced development of China's compulsory education," the ministry said it has also allocated 4.4 billion yuan to provide professional training for Chinese teachers and organized exchange programs for more than 500,000 teachers in 2014.

The moves are meant to better allocate educational resources, improve the overall quality of primary and middle school teachers, and bridge the gap between urban and rural education, it said.

The figures came just one day after the Chinese central authorities approved a plan to support rural teachers over the next five years by improving teachers' political and moral awareness, increasing their income, and persuading urban teachers to work in rural schools, among others.

According to a statement issued after the 11th meeting of the central leading group for deepening overall reform on Wednesday, Chinese leaders agreed that education in remote and poor areas in central and western regions has been the weakest link in the modernization of education.

"It is crucial that every child receives an equal education so as to stop poverty spreading to the next generation," the statement said.