Xi Jinping hosts Bill Gates for talks on health and development
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates visited Chinese president Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday, state television CCTV reported.
On arrival in the Chinese capital on Wednesday night, the US billionaire said he had come to meet partners from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to talk about health and development. His foundation announced on Thursday that it would donate 50 million dollars – about 45 million euros – to support China’s efforts in the fight against malaria and tuberculosis.
Cooperation will also be renewed with the Global Health Drug Discovery Institute (GHDDI), founded in China by Gates, as well as with Beijing municipal authorities and officials at Tsinghua University.
“China has made significant progress in reducing poverty and improving health in the country,” Gates said in a speech to the GHDDI on Thursday. “I hope the country can play an even greater role in addressing today’s challenges, especially those in African countries.”
China abandoned its zero-Covid policy and reopened its borders this year. The CEOs of Starbucks and General Motors, among others, have also been in China in recent weeks to meet government representatives.
Chinese president Xi Jinping meets Bill Gates in Beijing, 16 June 2023 © XINHUA/PANG XINGLEI
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