On August 14, 2026, at the National Conference Center in Beijing, Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Nurlan Yermekbayev took part in an exhibition of medical equipment and technologies. A ceremony was held to launch the "Kind-Hearted Journey" project for the treatment of children with congenital heart defects.
The project is being implemented in furtherance of the initiative of President Xi announced at the Tianjin SCO Summit of September 1, 2025, and provides for the provision, over a period of five years, of free high-tech medical assistance to 500 children with congenital heart defects from SCO member states through the use of mobile units that enable prompt on-site examinations and treatment, including in remote areas.
Such medical complexes, as well as modern treatment methods and digital technologies, were presented at the exhibition by Fuwai Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and the National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases.
The event was attended by Zheng Zhe, Deputy Chairman of the National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China; Cui Li, Deputy Chairman of the Chinese SCO Committee for Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation; Ambassador of the Republic of Tajikistan Zohir Ozod Saidzoda; Ambassador of the Republic of Uzbekistan Farhod Arziev; as well as representatives of the diplomatic missions of other SCO member states and the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In his remarks, Nurlan Yermekbayev emphasized the special humanitarian significance of the "Kind-Hearted Journey" project, noting that its implementation gives practical substance to cooperation in the field of healthcare and serves as a vivid embodiment of the values of the "Shanghai Spirit". The SCO Secretary-General expressed his appreciation to the organisations and specialists involved in the project's implementation and voiced his conviction that this initiative will make a substantial contribution to the exchange of best practices, the deepening of professional interaction between medical institutions, and the strengthening of friendship and mutual understanding among the peoples of the SCO member states.