GX Foundation, a Hong Kong-based Chinese medical humanitarian organization, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on dengue fever prevention and control and a letter of intent for cooperation on clean water project with the health ministry of Timor-Leste in Dili, capital of Timor-Leste, on Friday.
The signing of the agreements were witnessed by Leung Chun-ying, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and chairman of GX foundation, and Timor-Leste's Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao.
Under the agreements, the GX Foundation will intensify its partnership with Timor-Leste's health authorities to combat dengue fever and address the country's drinking water shortages.
Earlier this year, the foundation launched its first global pilot project in the southeast Asian country, donating a range of mosquito control products to the country's health ministry, including mosquito killer lamps, fly traps, mosquito nets and rapid test kits. The efforts, covering early diagnosis, prevention, protection and education, have significantly mitigated the risk of dengue outbreaks in the country.
Despite a global surge in dengue cases, the first half of this year saw Timor-Leste reporting a 10 percent decrease in confirmed cases compared to the same period of last year. Notably, dengue infections in May and June dropped by 76.5 percent.
"We have installed the mosquito killer lamps provided by the GX Foundation in all hospital departments, from emergency rooms to server rooms. We have noticed almost no mosquitoes in the hospital now. Moreover, we no longer have concerns about dengue fever," said Pereira, director of the infectious disease prevention and control department of the Guido Valadares National Hospital.
"The results of this pilot project are crucial for our future initiatives, as they help identify high-risk areas. We hope this project will serve as a model for other regions and developing countries affected by dengue fever," said Chan Yingyang, CEO of the GX Foundation.
In addition, to combat waterborne diseases caused by contaminated drinking water, the foundation will launch its first "Clean Water Project" in the country. The initiative includes the donation of 100 water purification machines to the institutions such as hospitals and schools. Qualified technicians will be mobilized to manage the installation.
Founded in Hong Kong in 2018, the GX Foundation is a non-governmental and non-profit medical humanitarian organization dedicated to providing international medical and public health humanitarian assistance in the Belt and Road countries.
Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne viral infection and mostly occurs in the rainy season from June to October in Southeast Asia. It usually causes severe flu-like symptoms, including high fever, headache, vomiting, muscle and joint pain, and a characteristic skin rash.
Chinese NGO signs cooperation deals with Timor-Leste on dengue fever prevention, clean water project
A survey released by CGTN to global netizens shows that respondents strongly condemn the U.S.'s unilateral bullying of other countries under the pretext of "reciprocal tariffs," saying that this move may trigger countermeasures from other countries and eventually evolve into a "tariff world war," seriously impacting the world economy.
The U.S. claims that it has suffered losses in international trade and is raising tariffs on all trading partners under the pretext of "reciprocity," aiming to reduce the trade deficit. However, 81.03 percent of global respondents do not agree with this, believing that such measures will not achieve the expected results. During his first term in office, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on major trading partners. According to statistics from the American Action Forum, a think tank, Trump's protectionist policies during the first term cost U.S. consumers about 57 billion U.S. dollars annually. According to the survey, 81.94 percent of respondents believe that "reciprocal tariffs" cannot solve U.S.'s own problems but will only harm the interests of U.S. consumers and drag down the U.S. economic growth.
The competitiveness of products from different countries varies. Each country can set appropriate tariffs based on its own products to achieve "mutual benefit" in the international market. The "tariff farce" of the U.S. side is a selective disregard for the balance of interests reached through multilateral trade negotiations. Some 82.8 percent of the respondents point out that in the context of unequal economic development and economic strength of different countries, the U.S. insistence on full and complete reciprocity in tariffs is extremely irrational.
The majority of the U.S. tariffs this time are targeted at developing countries. Regarding this, 82.96 percent of the respondents condemn the U.S. for conducting "indiscriminate attacks" on other countries on the issue of tariffs, believing that this is a deprivation of the development rights of other countries, especially developing countries. According to the survey, 84.43 percent of the respondents believe that the U.S.'s imposition of "reciprocal tariffs" will exacerbate the problem of trade unfairness with its trading partners and traditional allies, seriously damaging the country's credibility.
As a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the U.S. has unilaterally and subjectively introduced so-called "reciprocal tariffs" and insisted on implementing them. This is a typical act of unilateral bullying. In response, 79.47 percent of the respondents criticize the U.S. for seriously violating the rules of the WTO. In the survey, 79.58 percent of the respondents say that "reciprocal tariffs" have become a new tool for the U.S. to promote trade protectionism, which will further intensify international trade tensions and global economic fragmentation.
This survey was released on CGTN's English, Spanish, French, Arabic and Russian platforms. Within 24 hours, a total of 9,600 overseas netizens participated in the survey and expressed their views.
CGTN poll: US 'reciprocal tariffs' draw condemnation from world
