On July 20, Chinese Ambassador to the Maldives H.E. Kong Xianhua met with Payden, WHO Representative to the Maldives.

Ambassador Kong noted that China has long supported the development of the Maldives' healthcare sector. In recent years, China–Maldives health cooperation has yielded fruitful results. Through medical training programs, China has helped the Maldives cultivate local healthcare professionals. Planning and construction of the China–Maldives Friendship Hospital, a Chinese-assisted project, are progressing steadily. China has dispatched medical experts to the Maldives on multiple occasions to provide medical services. China stands ready to explore trilateral cooperation with WHO in the Maldives to strengthen the country's capacity in such areas as disease prevention and control, healthcare workforce development, and pharmaceutical supply security, so as to deliver greater benefits to the Maldivian people.

Payden highly commended China's significant contribution to the development of the Maldives' healthcare sector. She outlined the key priorities of the WHO Country Office in the Maldives and emphasized that WHO attaches great importance to its exchanges and cooperation with China. She expressed WHO's readiness to strengthen communication and coordination with China and jointly support the Maldives in improving its health and healthcare standards.