The 6th Mekong-Lancang Cooperation Foreign Ministers’ Meeting was held in Chongqing, China on June 8. The meeting issued the Joint Statement on Deepening Cooperation on Traditional Medicine Within the Framework of Lancang-Mekong Cooperation and arranged an exhibition. The main achievements of the two programs of “Materia Medica Benefits Lancang-Mekong Region” and “TCM Acupuncture and Moxibustion in Lancang-Mekong Region” undertaken by China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences (CACMS) were exhibited in the public health section.

The Joint Statement emphasizes that China will focus on conducting cooperation with other Lancang-Mekong countries in the areas such as the sharing of traditional medicine information for the prevention and treatment of major infectious diseases, scientific research on malaria and other infectious diseases, mutual learning among traditional medicine personnel, and personnel training for Lancang-Mekong countries.

The CACMS has been conducting pragmatic cooperation with traditional medicine institutions in the five Lancang-Mekong countries, having undertaken projects such as “Materia Medica Benefits Lancang-Mekong Region” and “TCM Acupuncture and Moxibustion in Lancang-Mekong Region” on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It conducts surveys on medicinal plant bases and TCM industry bases as well as organization of materials on medicinal plants in the five Lancang-Mekong countries through many channels, and compile materials on medicinal plants in the countries such as Cambodia; holds online training, having trained over 700 traditional medicine-related practitioners and students in the Lancang-Mekong countries; took the lead in launching the “Initiative to Use Traditional Medicine for the Prevention and Treatment of Major Infectious Diseases in Lancang-Mekong countries”, which was well received by universities and research institutions in Lancang-Mekong countries; has established English website of “Lancang-Mekong Week”, exhibited the results of the “Lancang-Mekong Project” cooperation, and collected videos on learning from the trainees.

At this conference, the “Materia Medica Benefits Lancang-Mekong Region” project exhibited the book Lao Herbal Pharmacopoeia for which Huang Luqi, a fellow of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and President of the CACMS serves as the editor-in-chief. This is also the first herbal pharmacopoeia in Laos. The “TCM Acupuncture and Moxibustion in Lancang-Mekong Region” project exhibited the book TCM-based Preventive Treatment of Diseases and Traditional Featured Therapies compiled by experts from the CACMS for the peoples in Lancang-Mekong countries to help them fight the epidemic. Furthermore, the exhibition covers the donation of books by researchers of the CACMS to the President of Laos, the survey of herbal medicine resources in Laos, and the holding of online training on acupuncture and moxibustion.

Under this initiative, the CACMS will continue to conduct in-depth cooperation with the Lancang-Mekong countries in the field of traditional medicine for mutual benefit and work with the people of Lancang-Mekong countries to build a community of common health for mankind.