CHANGCHUN, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) air force will launch a new round of a project to reduce poverty through education, according to a press conference held in Changchun, capital of northeast China's Jilin Province.

It is a duty for the PLA to make contributions to national construction and serve the people, said Wang Weihua, an air force colonel at the conference, adding that the air force actively participated in poverty alleviation while fulfilling its military mission during recent years.

The project, also titled "blue sky spring bud," has been in operation for 25 years, and covered 14 contiguous poverty-stricken areas as well as 22 key provincial-level regions with poverty alleviation tasks in central and western China, Wang said.

The air force will provide focused assistance to promote the coverage of higher education, vocational education, and improve the quality of teaching facilities in areas of extreme poverty, he said, adding that the air force also advanced environmental protection and medical services in provincial-level regions in western China.

Thursday marks the 27th international day for poverty eradication and the sixth National Poverty Alleviation Day in China.