BEIJING, June 6 (Xinhua) -- China will step up security guard training in its occupational education in an effort to have more qualified personnel for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

    "China is in urgent need of security guards with specialized skills," said an official with the Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE) Wednesday.

    The MOE, together with the Ministry of Public Security and Ministry of Labor and Social Security, Wednesday issued a notice, requiring occupational education schools to undertake a three-year security guard training program, which recruits junior high school students.

    Local governments should establish a consulting committee on security guard expertise and help schools undertake courses and training programs, the official said.

    Schools should also cooperate with local security guard companies to develop a series of job-oriented courses, the official said.

    The official said more investment will be put into schools which operate such training courses.

    Statistics show China has more than 2,300 security guard companies with 1.1 million staffs.

    Liu Jinguo, vice-minister of public security, said the security guard industry in China is still at an initial stage, as the education and training is lagging behind their foreign counterparts.