China's battle against tuberculosis (TB) and malaria has been given
a shot in the arm with a US$54 million donation from the Global
Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM).
The cash will be injected into the nation's medical system over a
period of five years. In the first two years, sums of US$26 million
and US$3.6 million will be used to control TB and malaria
respectively.
"If the program is implemented smoothly and successfully during the
first stage, the remaining US$24.4 million will be used to continue
the work," said Dr Daniel Chin, a TB specialist from the World
Health Organization (WHO).
The success of the program will also be assured if more
professionals are trained, Chin said.
"Work should also be done to strengthen the partnership between
governments at all levels since the spirit of the Global Fund is
partnership," Chin added.
The China Centre of Disease Control has been designated as the
managing body of the fund and will supervise how the money is
used.
Yu
Jingjin, deputy director of the Disease Control Department under
the Ministry of Health pledged yesterday to make the "best use" of
the fund to treat patients, control the diseases and cut infection
rates.
He
made the remarks at the inauguration of the program in Nanjing,
capital of East China's Jiangsu Province.
The State Council already allocates 40 million yuan (US$5 million)
annually to combat the diseases and the extra money from the Global
Fund will be a big help.
"Governments at all levels in China have always given great
importance to the prevention and treatment of TB and malaria,
resulting in the gradual decrease of the diseases," said Yu.
However, the number of TB patients in China is still alarmingly
high, up to 4.5 million. They are mainly in the underdeveloped
areas. Malaria is also found in 787 counties across China.
The central government and local governments have taken various
measures to control the disease.
Over the years, China's efforts in controlling TB and malaria have
also been backed by loans and grants from many world organizations
and other countries, including the WHO, World Bank, Britain,
Canada, Belgium and Japan.
The GFATM was founded in 2000 with the aim of controlling extremely
harmful diseases with donations from governments and
non-governmental organizations, enterprises and individuals
worldwide to help patients in both developed and developing
countries.
(China Daily March 6, 2003)