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BEIJING, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- The mainland will continue to provide great development opportunities for young people from Taiwan, said Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesperson with the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, on Wednesday.

More and more young people from Taiwan have chosen universities in the mainland because of the improved quality of education, Ma said, commenting on the increasing number of Taiwan students enrolled in mainland universities over the past few years despite the COVID-19 pandemic and tension across the Taiwan Strait.

Ma also attributed the growth to the effective COVID-19 response in the mainland, adding that since 2020 none of the 10,000-plus Taiwan college students in the mainland contracted COVID-19.

He said that the education authorities have upgraded admission policies this year to ease the procedure and improve services for Taiwan students.

The mainland also welcomes Taiwan's youth to develop their careers here, Ma said.

There are 78 career incubators for Taiwan's youth across the mainland. By the end of 2021, more than 4,500 projects were operating there. Also, more than 20,000 young people from the island founded startups or worked as employees and interns in the mainland.

"We will continue to create a favorable environment, provide better services and welcome more young people from Taiwan to come here," Ma said.