A senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has encouraged college graduates serving as village cadres to devote themselves to rural prosperity.

Li Yuanchao, head of the Organizational Department of the CPC Central Committee, made the remarks in a letter of congratulations for the publication of a special newspaper for college graduates-turned village cadres.

Over 200,000 college graduates are currently working as village officials across the country. Li, a member of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, applauded their active service to agricultural development and rural people's prosperity.

The weekly Journal of College Graduates-turned Village Cadres, sponsored by the organizational department of the Jiangsu provincial committee of the CPC, will serve as a platform for the group to share their experience, where they can also get the information about the country's latest policies and the overall situation of the rural economy.

"The newspaper should mirror the aspirations of these college graduates-turned-cadres," Li said.

The newspaper is significant in helping to create an atmosphere of support for the work of the college graduate-turned-officials and to encourage them to do a solid job at the grassroots level, he said.

In his letter, Li expressed hope that the officials will reinforce their confidence in the village work, and cultivate profound affection with local people.

"They should contribute more to the construction of a new socialist countryside," he wrote.