Innovation, partnerships key to 'Healthy China'

A1 One of the key factors behind this centenary accomplishment is the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China, which has successfully united people to strive together for a common goal. Meanwhile, China has taken a revolutionary development approach tailored to meet China's unique characteristics. There have never been any off-the-shelf development models for China, but innovation and the dare-to-explore spirit have played key roles in the nation's economic development.

A2 In view of global economic development, globalization is still the historical trend, and cooperation for mutual benefit will remain the long-term trend. Opening-up will connect domestic markets with international markets and leverage external resources to achieve stronger and more sustainable development.

Looking forward, AstraZeneca will continue to see exciting opportunities to deliver high-quality drugs and innovative healthcare solutions/services for unmet medical needs in China. We see huge unmet healthcare needs in emerging areas at the county and village levels. Thus we aim to help improve medical capabilities and advance disease prevention and treatment in counties and rural areas.

We also see huge potential for local R&D cooperation, where we expect to commercialize with our partners not only high-quality drugs and devices, but also innovative healthcare solutions.

A3 As China enters a "new development stage", healthcare will become an important contribution to people's well-being and the Chinese economy.

Now the pharmaceutical industry has become one of the fastest-growing sectors in China's national economy. Internationalization and innovation have turned out to be an inevitable trend in the country's pharmaceutical industry. The past few years have seen China's visionary efforts in continually improving its innovation capabilities both in R&D and smart healthcare areas. Meanwhile, the strong determination and confidence of the Chinese government in continuing its opening-up strategy and creating a more open, fair and transparent business environment will continue to support the realization of the second centenary-related goal.

A4 We believe AstraZeneca will continue to benefit from China's world-class business environment.

We see new healthcare trends in China, including increasing needs of early screening and early diagnosis and early treatment of major diseases at the grassroots level. We see an increasing need for diversified, differentiated and personalized medical solutions, and stronger awareness for knowledge of disease management from people in China.

AstraZeneca will further our China strategy featuring a national headquarters (Shanghai) and five regional headquarters (Beijing, Guangzhou, Wuxi, Hangzhou and Chengdu). We will tap into regional cross-sector industrial advantages and facilitate deeper cooperation with partners from both healthcare and cross-sector industries.

A5 Despite facing hardships from the pandemic and complex global economic challenges, China has always insisted on opening wide to the world. AstraZeneca believes China has great potential for economic development and will continue to attract foreign investment with its lower tariffs, shorter negative lists, more convenient market access, more transparent market rules and more attractive business environment.