BEIJING, April 20 -- China has introduced a roadmap designed to promote traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) culture, said a health official at a press conference Thursday.

China aims for more high-quality TCM cultural products and services, improved TCM culture and health literacy of the public, and wider spread of TCM overseas by 2025, said Xing Chao, an official with the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Xing made the remarks when elaborating on a plan designed to further support the development of TCM during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

Noting that TCM culture is the foundation for TCM inheritance and development, Xing said that more efforts will be focused on the research of the cultural and spiritual symbols of TCM; the research, protection, collation and publication of TCM classics; the building of a TCM museum system; and the promotion of TCM culture overseas.

THEMED MUSEUMS

The country is working to promote TCM culture by utilizing themed museums and education bases, said Chen Zheng, deputy director of the National Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

According to the records from the National Cultural Heritage Administration, China had 83 TCM museums as of 2022, including one first-class museum, five second-class ones and three third-class ones, Chen said.

Noting that the TCM museums in China are facing problems such as unbalanced regional development, a lack of services and research capacities, and an incomplete management system, Chen said the country has established a mechanism responsible for collecting, protecting and studying TCM-related cultural relics, holding relevant exhibitions, and organizing promotion activities.

TCM museums are going digital, according to Chen, adding that an online exhibition on herbal medicines from across the country is available on the official website of the National Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Apart from themed museums, China also boasts 81 bases dedicated to the publicity and education of TCM culture, Xing said, adding that venues for experiencing TCM culture were also established in cities such as Beijing and Shanghai to better serve the public.

GOING GLOBAL

TCM has spread to 196 countries and regions and gained worldwide recognition for its unique strengths in disease prevention and control and rehabilitation, said Wei Chunyu, an official with the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Chinese acupuncture, Lum medicinal bathing of Sowa Rigpa, and Taijiquan have been included in the UNESCO Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage, and the Huang Di Nei Jing and Ben Cao Gang Mu, ancient Chinese classics on medicine, have been listed in the Memory of the World Register, Wei said.

Every year, a large number of international students come to China to study TCM, and TCM products and services have been in great demand at the annual China International Fair for Trade in Services, Wei said.

China has made plans to better introduce TCM to the world, promote exchanges and mutual learning between civilizations, and help build a global community of health for all, said the official.

China had dispatched TCM specialists to 29 countries to aid the fight against COVID-19 during the pandemic. And it has released multilingual versions of TCM diagnostic and therapeutic protocols for novel coronavirus infections, and shared its experience in fighting the virus with traditional medicine with more than 150 countries and regions, Wei said.