China will play an active role at the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA) and host three side events during the annual meeting in Geneva from May 18 to 23, the Chinese delegation said at a media briefing on Sunday.
The assembly will review more than 60 agenda items, covering technical topics including noncommunicable diseases, mental health, universal health coverage, and public health emergency preparedness and response, as well as administrative matters such as financing and implementation of the World Health Organization (WHO) Program Budget 2026-2027, audit oversight and human resources.
The Chinese delegation, led by Lei Haichao, head of China's National Health Commission, briefed the media on their involvement in the gathering.
Lei will deliver a speech during the general debate. In addition to fully engaging in technical consultations, the delegation will host three side events focusing on leveraging digital and smart technologies to build a fairer and more accessible health care system, adopting a holistic One Health approach to safeguard global public health security, and promoting simple, effective mosquito control to eliminate mosquito-borne diseases.
China will also participate in WHO member state briefings, roundtable discussions, side events hosted by other countries, and resolution consultations, as well as hold working exchanges with senior WHO secretariat officials, technical departments, and other national delegations, according to the briefing.
The World Health Assembly is the WHO's decision-making body. Attended by delegations from all 194 WHO member states, it brings together high-level country representatives and other stakeholders to address global health challenges.
China to host three side events at 79th World Health Assembly
The 2026 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting will be held from May 22-23 in Suzhou City, east China's Jiangsu Province, with preliminary consultations and seminars kicking off on Monday.
Multiple consultations have commenced, including discussions on the joint statement to be issued at the meeting and ways to promote cooperation in digital trade.
Additionally, the "Big Market for All: Export to China" Suzhou special event and the Suzhou products promotion event opened Monday.
Experts emphasized that the minister's meeting will play a timely role in advancing regional economic integration and tackling emerging trade challenges through deeper cooperation in digital and green sectors.
"APEC is the highest-level and most influential economic cooperation mechanism in the Asia-Pacific region. On the 20th anniversary of the vision for a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP), the 2026 Suzhou APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting will play a positive role in safeguarding the multilateral trading system, stabilizing Asia-Pacific cooperation, and leading global open development, countering the increasingly intensifying wave of trade protectionism," said Yuan Qian, deputy director of the trade and investment research division of the Institute of World Economics and Politics, which is under the administration of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
"At the same time, as a new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation accelerates, this meeting takes cooperation in emerging areas such as digital and green as important content, better aligning with the trend of global technological innovation and development, countering global economic growth pressures, and opening up new spaces for regional cooperation and development," the expert added.
Terms such as digital economy, electronic bills of lading, and green supply chains appear frequently in the agenda of the APEC trade ministers' meeting.
"Although electronic bills of lading may seem small, their impact on international trade is very critical. They can improve customs clearance efficiency and reduce customs clearance costs. If promoted, it will not only affect these developed economies and large traders, but more importantly, it will significantly enhance the ability of some small and medium-sized economies and some developing countries to participate in international trade and improve their trade efficiency," said Zhou Mi, deputy director of the Institute of American and Oceania, Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, which is under the administration of the Ministry of Commerce.
This year, a key topic of the meeting is the digital economy.
"In the past, people thought the digital economy was an option; now it has become a must. Because having advantages in digital economy development means having greater advantages in international trade. They (member economies) have seen some of China's practices and approaches in the digital economy field and hope to use such a platform to further improve their own technology and strengthen coordination with China," said Zhou.
Founded in 1989, the APEC is the highest-level, broadest and most influential economic cooperation mechanism in the Asia-Pacific region. About 700 representatives from 21 APEC economies and international organizations will gather in Jiangsu for the APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting.
Preliminary consultations begin for APEC trade ministers' meeting
