China provides billions of artemisinin drugs in anti-malarial assistance: FM

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends the International Forum on the 50th Anniversary of the Discovery of Artemisinin and on Building a Global Community of Health for All in Beijing, capital of China, April 25, 2022. Wang read a congratulatory message from Chinese President Xi Jinping at the forum on Monday. (Xinhua/Wang Ye)

BEIJING, April 25 (Xinhua) -- China had provided billions of doses of artemisinin medicines and trained tens of thousands of professionals for developing countries by the end of 2021 in its international anti-malarial assistance, according to Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

China has also assisted in the construction of malaria prevention and control centers for 30 countries, and sent 28,000 medical team members to 72 developing countries, Wang said at the International Forum on the 50th Anniversary of the Discovery of Artemisinin and on Building a Global Community of Health for All in Beijing.

According to the World Health Organization, in sub-Saharan Africa alone, about 240 million people have benefited from the artemisinin-based combination therapy, Wang added.

Artemisinin, an effective cure for malaria, was first discovered and successfully extracted by China and has played an instrumental role in eliminating the disease in China since its discovery 50 years ago.

Wang called on all countries in the world to put aside their differences, unite and join hands to build a community of human health, and be committed to eliminating major infectious diseases such as malaria.

Wang also called for efforts to jointly fight the COVID-19 pandemic and improve the international health governance system.