Yearsago,NiuHongwei’sTCMcompanyinWeiyuan,acountyinnorthwestChina’sGansuProvince,usedtoonlysellherbstodomesticpharmaceuticalenterprises.
Amongthe23impoverishedcountiesinGansu,Weiyuanisknownforitsmedicinalproducts,inparticularastragalusrootanddangshen,orcodonopsispilosula.
“Ourbusinesstookoffin2013aftertheBeltandRoadInitiativewasproposed,”recalledNiu.“Foreignentrepreneursandofficialsbeganvisitingmycompanytoseekcooperativeopportunities.”
Theinitiative,alsoknownastheSilkRoadEconomicBeltandthe21st-CenturyMaritimeSilkRoad,wasputforwardbyChinesePresidentXiJinpingin2013inabidtoboostconnectivityandseekcommonprosperity.
In2016,NiusignedanagreementwithamerchantfromSouthKorea.Heprovidesherbalmedicineseverymonthtothemerchantwhosecompanyprocessesthemintocosmeticsandhealthproducts.
NiuwillmakehisfirstbusinesstriptoSingaporenextmonthtoexplorethepossibilitiesofanewforeignmarket.
“Inthepast,itwasunimaginableforsmallcompanieslikemineinChina’sremotewesttoengageininternationaltrade.Nowwehavemoreopportunities,”hesaid.
AnotherpharmaceuticalcompanyFoci,basedinthecityofLanzhouinnorthwestChina’sGansuProvince,hascollaboratedwith28countriesandregionsacrosstheworld,exportinghundredsoftypesofherbalmedicine.
“WehopethatTCMwillbeincludedinthemedicalinsuranceoflocalgovernments,somorepeoplecanbenefitfromit,”saidSunYu,generalmanagerofFoci.
TCMisseenbymanyasanationaltreasureinChinaforitsuniquetheoriesandpractices,suchasherbalmedicine,acupuncture,massageanddietetics.
InadditiontothegrowingoverseasdemandfortraditionalChineseherbs,TCMservicesandculturehavealsobeguntoattractmoreglobalattention.
GansuUniversityofChineseMedicine’saffiliatedhospitalhasbeencooperatingwithamedicalinstituteinBraziltosetupaTCMcenterinSaoPaulo.
ZhangXiaogang,presidentofthehospital,saidthatbothsideshaveagreedonthelocationandtalenttraining.InMay,20BraziliandoctorscametoChinaforTCMtheoryandpracticetraining.
LocatedinnorthwestChina,GansuisthebirthplaceofTCMmasterssuchasQiBo,andtheprovinceisrichinTCMculture.
LocalauthoritieshaveincreasedeffortstopromoteTCMoverseas,witheightTCMmedicalcollegesandsixmedicalcentersincountriessuchasKyrgyzstan,HungaryandFrance.
Chinahasestablished26overseasTCMcentersinthepastthreeyears,mostofwhichareincountriesalongtheBeltandRoadroutes,accordingtotheStateAdministrationofTraditionalChineseMedicine.
YaoXiaoqiang,aTCMpractitionersentfromChinatoKyrgyzstan,giveslecturestoforeigncolleaguesandsometimesoffersfreetreatmentstolocalsataTCMcenter.
PatientsneedtohaveX-rays,bloodtestsorotherdiagnostictestsdonebeforetheTCMpractitionerofferstreatment.“Theycometostrengthenandbalancetheiroverallwell-beingandtogetrelieffromthepain,”Yaosaid.
AlexanderGerovchars,associateprofessorofacupunctureandmoxibustionatBogomoletsNationalMedicalUniversityinUkraine,hasvisitedLanzhoufourtimestoattendintensiveTCMtrainingcourses.
GerovcharssaidthatTCMandWesternmedicinecanimproveoverallmedicalservicesforpeoplebycomplementingeachother.“TraditionalChinesemedicineprovidesanewwaytosolvehealthproblems.Weneedit,”hesaid.
ThisisaneditedexcerptofanarticleoriginallypublishedbyXinhuaNewsAgencyCopyeditedbyRebecaToledoCommentsto