Nearly 20 years after the sector entered a decline, skills-based learning is making a comeback, as Hou Liqiang and Li Yingqing report from Kunming.

The prospects for the nation's vocational schools, the traditional centers of technical education, are becoming brighter as a result of government calls for a renewal of the "Spirit of Craftsmanship" and the growing influence of the Made in China 2025 initiative.

However, although the number of enrollments is rising, vocational schools are still failing to attract quality students, and many young people only consider them as a last resort if they fail to gain a place at university.