Nation to open 20 overseas TCM centers

Wang Xiaopin.[Photo provided to China Daily]

She said the centers will be based on the various needs for TCM in different countries and will require local partners.

These partners could include hospitals, research institutions and the overseas pharmaceutical industry. "It all depends on the demands and various practical situations in these countries, including the legal status of TCM," she said.

About 300,000 Chinese TCM practitioners are working worldwide, according to the administration. The international market for TCM products and services is valued at $50 billion.

More than 10,000 foreigners arrive in China each year to learn TCM. Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong province are their top destinations.

Gao Sihua, former president of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, said the university has held many short-term TCM training courses for foreigners. "They are mostly interested in techniques such as acupuncture and massage," he said.

Gao also said that China still lacks professionals with a good command of both TCM and English.

Wang said that apart from seed funding, "we will also help to send qualified TCM workers to the new centers."

The administration has supported other initiatives to promote TCM overseas, such as Confucius Institutes run mainly by the Chinese National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language, also known as Hanban.