Washington, July 15 - President Barack Obama says his administration is building a 21st century education system in America to compete with 'China and India and everybody else all around the world'.

The US has 'to ensure that we're educating and preparing our people for the new jobs of the 21st century', he said, talking about the 'American Graduation Initiative' Tuesday at a Community College in Warren, Michigan.

'We've got to prepare our people with the skills they need to compete in this global economy.'

His administration had set a goal for the US to once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020, Obama said.