BEIJING, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- China hopes to entice 200,000 overseas Chinese to return home in the period 2006-2010 by setting up science centers where they can carry out their work, said the Ministry of Personnel on Thursday.

    Statistics from 2005 show that barely a quarter of the Chinese scholars who have studied aboard have returned to China.

    China wants to attract leading Chinese scholars who are familiar with international practice and can help lead research in certain fields back home, according to the Ministry.

    The government is offering more favorable policies for returned scientists who want to launch start-ups by creating some 50 special technological incubation centers over the five-year period.

    By the end of 2005, more than 930,000 Chinese have studied abroad, with about 230,000 returning to the country over the last decades.