At the invitation of Ministry of Health, Turkey and Ministry of Health and Social Development, Russia, Mr. Jiang Fan, Vice Minister of National Population and Family Planning Commission (NPFPC), China led a delegation to visit Turkey and Russia from 16 to 25 September 2009.
During their visit to Turkey, the delegation had in-depth exchanges and discussions with Turkish colleagues on issues such as the study and planning of population development strategy, legislation, urbanization, floating population, family health care in communities, social security system, and adolescent reproductive health. Vice Minister of Health of Turkey met with the delegation and briefly introduced the development of population, health and family planning programmed in Turkey, especially about what they have done in earnestly implementing ICPD Program of Action and MDGs, improving safe motherhood, maternal health care and free FP/RH service and consultation, and the obvious improvement in maternal mortality, infant mortality and contraceptive prevalence rate. Vice Minister Jiang Fan introduced the achievements China had made in population and family planning program and the challenges in front. He also gave a brief account of the practice and experience of the Chinese government in safeguarding people's legal rights and interests, implementing population and family planning program and providing quality of care in family planning and reproductive health. The two parties agreed that, both countries were facing the similar problems in their development, such as large population size and fast urbanization, so that they could have extensive cooperation in the field of population and family planning. During their visit in Turkey, Department of Maternal and Infant Health and Family Planning of Turkey Ministry of Health specially organized a seminar to have exchanges on issues related to population development and family planning in their country. The delegation also visited two community service centers in Ankara and the largest maternal and infant health care hospital in Turkey, so that they could learn about the medical and health care system and community service system from different angels and levels. Their experiences such as measures for equal basic public health by the Turkish government, social insurance system and basic service in communities would be references for the development of family planning service agencies and innovation of mechanism in China.
During their visit to Russia, Vice Minister Jiang Fan and other delegation members paid a visit to the Ministry of Health and Social Development and the Gynecological and Reproductive Health Research Center of Moscow. During their visit to the departments in Ministry of Health and Social Development, both parties exchanges information on and discussed issues related to population, reproductive health and the development of women and children. Russia colleagues appraised the rapid economic development in China and the achievements of China in population and family planning and, at the same time, introduced the severe challenges Russia faced in population issues and major strategies. Russia has attached great significance to population issues, carried out a national Health Plan and adopted integrated and systematic measures to improve the levels of maternal and infant health care and fertility. During the meeting, Vice Minister Jiang Fan emphasized that, though China and Russia were facing different problems in the population field, however, both countries had the same needs in such aspects as planning for population development, improving of the level of maternal and child health care and reproductive health, increasing contraceptive prevalence rate and conducting adolescent sex education, and therefore had extensive similar research fields and cooperative perspectives. Both sides wished to, through mutual visits and field investigation and jointly-organized symposiums and training workshops, further strengthen exchanges and cooperation at various levels. The delegation also visited the Gynecological and Reproductive Health Research Center of Moscow, where they had exchanges with its director general and experts in related fields, and visited some divisions of the center, where they were deeply impressed by their research and the level of health care service.
