Zhang Ming, Secretary-General of the SCO, attended the opening ceremony of the forum and delivered a speech
date：2024-02-22 14:56:29 views：
On September 6th, the 6th Belt and Road Forum for Traditional Chinese Medicine Development, as a summit forum of the 2023 China International Fair for Trade in Services, was successfully held at the Beijing National Convention Center. The forum was co-hosted by the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, and the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, with the theme: 'Deepening Cooperation of Belt and Road Traditional Chinese Medicine Development and Jointly Creating a Global Community of Health for All'. Officials from Chinese and foreign government departments, representatives from international organizations, academicians from the Academy of Engineering, Nobel laureates, and leaders from the political consultative conferences of 10 provinces including Guangdong, Zhejiang, Shaanxi, Yunnan, Jiangxi, Fujian, Sichuan, Gansu, Hebei, and Henan, alongside diplomats from 20 embassies stationed in China from countries such as South Africa, Israel, Belarus, Pakistan, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Cape Verde, Liberia, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, and Cuba, as well as representatives from over 400 enterprises, participated in the event. Zhang Ming, Secretary-General of the SCO, attended the opening ceremony of the forum and delivered a speech.
Zhang Ming, Secretary-General of the SCO, attended the opening ceremony of the forum and delivered a speechLadies and gentlemen, esteemed experts, and friends, good day. Thank you for the invitation to participate in this forum. In today’s world, traditional medicine is increasingly gaining recognition. Its various methods and theoretical assumptions have been widely applied in clinical practices around the globe, complementing and even substituting modern medicine in certain aspects. The member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) have historically possessed resources in traditional medicine and continue to highly value and dedicate efforts towards cooperation in this field.
In recent SCO summit speeches, Chinese President Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the importance of continuing to successfully conduct the organization’s traditional medicine forums and deepening exchanges and mutual learning. Under the care of President Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan, a traditional medicine center was established in Tashkent in 2020. India also pays great attention to traditional medicine and, during its tenure as the rotating presidency of the SCO from 2022 to 2023, established the SCO Traditional Medicine Experts Working Group at the initiative of Prime Minister Modi. From declarations of recent SCO summits and communiques of prime ministers' meetings, it is evident that member states fully recognize the positive role of traditional medicine in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and are in favor of cooperation in relevant fields.
Among the world’s traditional medicines, the development of Chinese medicine is particularly noteworthy. With its unique advantages in disease prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation, Chinese medicine has been an important vessel for exchange and cooperation among countries along the Silk Road since ancient times, positively impacting the progress of world civilization. In 2019, the World Health Organization included traditional medicine, originating from Chinese medicine, in the International Classification of Diseases, marking the international public health system’s recognition of the value of traditional medicine, including Chinese medicine. In recent years, the exchange and cooperation in Chinese medicine have become a new highlight in the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative. In the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese medicine has once again demonstrated its unique value and significant role, receiving widespread welcome from people in many countries, including SCO member states.
Esteemed experts and friends, properly conducting the work of safeguarding the integrity and fostering innovation in Chinese medicine, and better leveraging its positive role in disease prevention and treatment will benefit more people from the development of traditional medicine. This contributes to the construction of a human community with a shared future. In this regard, the SCO is willing, as always, to provide a platform to promote the spread of regional civilizations, allowing different civilizations to interact, integrate, and develop together.
Finally, I wish all participants good health. May this forum achieve complete success and contribute significantly to human health through Chinese prescriptions. Thank you!