New China partnership to improve health

Professor Stephen MacMahon, Principal Director of the George Institute for Global  Health, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on May 29 with Ren Jinyang, President and Secretary General of the Guanghua Foundation, forming a solid foundation for future collaboration and friendship during the auspicious Year of the Dragon.

The signing was attended by top Guanghua Foundation officials as well as Professor Robyn Norton, Principal Director of The George Institute, Professor Anushka Patel, Chief Scientist at The George Institute, Professor Yangfeng Wu, Executive Director of The George Institute, China, and Professor Lijing Yan, Head of Research and Development at The George Institute, China.

The Guanghua Foundation is one of the top public health charities in China, ranking number one among public health charities in 2010. As part of the Central Communist Youth League, they have a major focus on Chinese adolescents and their health.

Professor Stephen MacMahon said The George Institute was excited to sign the MOU with the Guanghua Foundation and establish this partnership.

“Their goals are in line with what we want to do at The George Institute, and their team is very experienced and knowledgeable about the health landscape in China,” he said.

“We expect this partnership to be very beneficial to not just directly to The George Institute and Guanghua, but more broadly for  the people of China, particularly young people and people living in rural areas.”

Over the coming years, the partnership between The George Institute, China and the Guanghua Foundation will focus on raising funds to support public health research around four themes: rural health, adolescent health, development of new and inexpensive technologies to improve health, and capacity building for Chinese public health professionals.

Professor Yangfeng Wu said that the Guanghua Foundation had a  good reputation in China and would be an important partner for The George Institute, China.

“They already have a very good track record and we expect to contribute to their future success as well as bring them closer to the academic research on health that is undertaken at The George Institute,” he said.