Twelve years after China proposed the vision of building a global community with a shared future for mankind, its health-centered initiatives continue to deliver tangible results worldwide. From eradicating infectious diseases to deploying medical teams across continents, the country has cemented its role as a proactive contributor to international public health.
China's domestic progress offers a foundation for its global outreach. Average life expectancy rose from 35 years in 1949 to 79 years in 2024, with landmark achievements including the elimination of smallpox, polio, and malaria. This transformation has enabled broader international cooperation, particularly through medical diplomacy.
By late 2023, over 30,000 Chinese medical professionals had served in 76 countries and regions, treating nearly 300 million patients. Since its first foreign medical mission to Algeria in 1963, China has supported the construction of 130+ healthcare facilities and established 46 medical partnerships globally. In Africa alone, teams in Sudan and Malawi performed 253,400 surgeries by mid-2024 while treating millions of patients.
These efforts align with China's philosophy of collaborative development. 'Health connectivity forms the bedrock of a shared future,' noted a public health researcher from Singapore. The establishment of 25 specialized clinical centers worldwide highlights the strategy’s technical depth—from maternal care in Cambodia to trauma centers in the Pacific Islands.
As global health challenges escalate, China's model of combining domestic capacity-building with international partnerships offers insights for multilateral cooperation. The next phase may further integrate digital health innovations and climate-resilient infrastructure, reinforcing the vision of health as a universal right.
