The 6th China-Cuba Meeting of the Joint Working Group on Biotechnology Cooperation started sessions in Havana on Friday, aimed at further broadening projects between the two nations.
Industrialization, research and development, agriculture, regulations and health are the major fields for work, all included in a joint plan for the past five years.
In the opening session, Vice President of the Chinese National Development and Reform Commission, Zhang Xiaoqiang, reported on latest results and other initiatives to promote new programs and define the course of future agreements.
A most significant achievement is the installation and trial of a bottling line of a monoclonal antibody with cutting-edge technology, a model technique in this exchange.
Another achievement is the development of recombinant human alpha interferon and other products, including blood glucometers and biosensors, as well as equipment to produce them in Cuba.
Medicine regulatory centers in both countries increase these exchanges. Cuba has registered two products in China, and another three are in process of registration, while China also registers products in Cuba, noted Zhang.
Other sectors with great potentials include agriculture, with several programs aimed at carrying out research on rice seedbeds, prevention of plagues and diseases, studies to improve the soil and bee breeding, he said.
In the health field the two countries are working on initiatives including medical staff training and others oriented to control and prevent AIDS, tuberculosis and hepatitis.
The 6yh China-Cuba Meeting of the Joint Working Group on Biotechnology Cooperation, scheduled to wind up sessions on Nov. 26, is sponsored by the ministries of Health, Agriculture and Science and Technology of the two countries.
A memorandum of understanding for biotechnology cooperation preceded these bilateral meetings, initiated in 2004 by the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, and his Chinese counterpart, Hu Hintao.