China, Africa boost joint fight against malaria
Xinhua, April 24, 2017 Adjust font size:
File photo shows a Chinese doctor hands over medicine to a local staff worker at a port in Monrovia, Liberia, on June 16, 2016. (Xinhua/Li Jinliang)
China has helped African countries re-energize the war against malaria through biomedical research, training of health workers and provision of cheaper drugs, officials said on Friday during a China-Africa Symposium on eliminating the tropical disease.
The symposium was organized by Kenya's ministry of health in conjunction with China State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine.
In his opening remarks at the symposium, Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for Health Cleopa Mailu hailed China's contribution toward the fight against malaria that is a leading cause of children and pregnant mothers in Africa.
"We applaud the Chinese scientists who discovered the ingredients for the Artemisinin Combination Therapy (ACTs) which came at an opportune time when malaria treatment was proving to be a challenge globally," Mailu said.
He noted that China's sophisticated alternative medicine industry has inspired African countries to develop their own and enhance response to killer tropical diseases.
