Lei Haichao, minister of China's National Health Commission (NHC), met on May 9 with Merieux Foundation President Alain Merieux in Beijing.

Lei explained China's key health priorities for the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30). He spoke highly of the fruitful cooperation between the Merieux Foundation and its Chinese partners in areas such as infectious disease control and laboratory development. Lei emphasized that global health challenges require stronger international collaboration and expressed hope that the foundation would continue to serve as a bridge to deepen people-to-people exchanges and pragmatic cooperation in public health and talent cultivation, thereby enriching the connotation of the China-France comprehensive strategic partnership.

Merieux, for his part, presented the foundation's collaborative projects in China. He reaffirmed the foundation's commitment to strengthening exchanges and mutual learning with China in tuberculosis control and the development of the public health workforce to contribute further to advancing global health.

Officials of related departments of China's NHC, the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration, and the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences attended the meeting.