Peng Liyuan meets with Zambian first lady

Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, meets with First Lady of Zambia Mutinta Hichilema in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 15, 2023. The Zambian first lady accompanied Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema on his state visit to China. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

BEIJING, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, on Friday met with First Lady of Zambia Mutinta Hichilema, who accompanied Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema on his state visit to China.

During their meeting in Beijing, Peng said she appreciated the Zambian first lady's long-term commitment to humanitarian and public welfare causes, as well as her great efforts to protect the rights and interests of vulnerable groups, women and children. She also spoke about China's achievements in education for women and girls, and in AIDS prevention and control work, as well as the progress the country has made in improving the rights of people with disabilities.

Peng said that China and Zambia enjoy a long-standing friendship, and that the Tazara Railway is a monument to that friendship. She said she believes that under the guidance of the two heads of state, the two sides will continuously strengthen exchanges and cooperation in various fields and bring benefits to their two peoples.

The Zambian first lady spoke of the all-weather friendship forged by older generations of Zambian and Chinese leaders, as well as the spirit of the Tazara Railway. She also shared what she had seen and heard during President Hichilema's visit to China, and expressed deep admiration for China's development achievements.

She introduced Zambia's work on education for women and girls, as well as its AIDS prevention and control work. She thanked Peng for her long-term concern for the development of Zambian women, children and adolescents, and said she looks forward to contributing to deepening the Zambia-China friendship.