China on Tuesday launched its first special fund for cyber security with an initial capital of 300 million yuan ($45.6 million).

The fund, established by the China Internet Development Foundation (CIDF), will be used to provide financial assistance to experts and teachers who specialize in cyber security. It will also subsidize promising Chinese students pursuing cyber security, as well as training centers for cyber security talent, according to the fund.

At the fund's launch, Vice Minister of Education Lin Huiqing stressed the significance of cultivating cyber security talent to realize the nation's strategic goal of becoming a strong Internet power.

"Under the nation's goal, education of cyberspace talent has been in short supply in China and everything is at the startup stage, from educational materials to qualified teachers," Qin An, director of the China Institute of Cyberspace Strategy, told the Global Times.

Qin said students will be trained to react to online threats, including terrorism and cybercrimes, and will defend the country in cyberspace. 

China is offering new majors on cyber security, information countermeasures and confidential management at universities, with the number of such majors surpassing 120 and cyberspace-related majors exceeded 4,800, according to Lin.

China began to encourage universities to open cyberspace-related majors in 2015, which shows remarkable progress toward a standardized education model, said Fang Binxing, an expert on network information security at the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

Fang noted that over 30 universities are offering cyberspace-related majors.

The fund's initial endowment was provided by Zheng Jiachun, the president of Hong Kong-based Chow Tai Fook Jewelry Group and a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

"The endowment shows support for the development of national cyber security," said Wang Xiujun, deputy director of the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC).

Zhao Zeliang, a CAC official, said over 8,000 students graduate with cyberspace-related degrees every year, and 700 million people in China have Internet access, the Xinhua News Agency reported.