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)