How the Healthy China Initiative is changing daily life, building a livable, happier society: foreign observers

    Editor's Note:

    "Building a Healthy China by 2035 is a strategic decision made by the Communist Party of China Central Committee" - Chinese President Xi Jinping made the remarks while attending a joint group meeting during the fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the top political advisory body, on Friday. What makes the Healthy China Initiative appealing, and how will it benefit people's everyday lives? The Global Times has invited four foreign observers - currently residing in China - to share their personal experiences and observations. Through their perspectives, this series aims to illustrate how the initiative reflects a human touch, embodies China's governance philosophy and demonstrates its institutional strengths.

    A healthy society is a happy society, and China walks the walk

    Jerry Grey, a British Australian freelance writer who has studied cross cultural change management in China and has lived in the country, traveling extensively for almost two decades

    I'm known for having ridden the length and breadth of China, and consider myself to be one of the luckiest people in the world to live in a place that makes cycling so easy, convenient and accessible. But it isn't just riding a bike that's important, it's the benefits that come with it.

    Chinese President Xi Jinping once said, fitness for all is the foundation and guarantee for people to build up their physiques and live a healthy life. His words and desire to see a healthy society reflect what is perhaps the most important facet of China's growth.

    Global economists agree that there are many ways to measure improvements of a country. GDP is one, and Price Purchase Parity is another. However, the most important measure, without a doubt, is life expectancy. A healthy country increases in life expectancy, an unhealthy one declines.

    When a country's life expectancy increases, it's because everything else is in place. There is good education, good facilities, healthy living conditions and a national awareness that health and fitness are important. Nowhere is this more apparent than in China.

    There are private gyms where people can sign up and join with a view to keeping fit. Meanwhile, the government has provided something better. There are free exercise machines in every community, which can be found in even the most remote villages. Cycling around Zhongshan, my adopted hometown, I see public parks filled with people dancing; I see walkways along the river spanning several kilometers, recently constructed for citizens to stroll, jog or run through the many trees planted there. Within 100 meters of my home is a square, on one side of the road where people gather in the mornings and evenings to play music and dance together, on the other side of the road is a public gymnasium with several different forms of exercise machines.

    Many people I know outside of China have doubts about China and these facts constantly surprise them. In September last year, the government announced that by 2030, it will create 10,000 convenient "life circles," ensuring that residents can access community services, including childcare and elderly care, cultural and sports facilities, and healthcare centers, within a 15-minute walk from their homes.

    China is well aware that a healthy society is a happy society and instead of just talking the talk, China encourages its citizens to actually get out and walk the walk, or dance, run, swim, skate or cycle. Whatever it is, we're getting out and doing it.

    Sustainability and health are inseparable

    Einar Tangen, a senior fellow of the Canadian think tank Center for International Governance Innovation who has been living in China for more than 20 years

    President Xi on Friday stressed unswervingly following the path of health development with Chinese characteristics to ensure decisive progress in advancing the Healthy China Initiative during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30). Building a Healthy China is a strategic decision, he noted.

    Building a Healthy China is a commitment to the people, and strengthening ecological construction is aimed at safeguarding their health. My own experiences over the past 21 years reflect the evolution of a country that once made environmental sacrifices to build its economy, and now has the resources and determination to restore a healthier and more livable environment. Blue skies have replaced the industrial smog that once hung over many cities. Electric vehicles now glide quietly through city streets, and bike lanes lined with trees and bushes have transformed cycling from a health hazard into a healthy pleasure. River walks, pocket parks and sidewalk cafés have created vibrant community spaces throughout urban centers.

    At the heart of this vision lies the belief that the health of the environment directly affects the health of the people. As Xi has stated, "A sound eco-environment is the fairest public good and the most inclusive benefit to people's wellbeing." Clean air, safe water, fertile soil and healthy ecosystems are not luxuries available only to a privileged few. They are essential conditions for protecting the health and quality of life of all citizens.

    The Healthy China Initiative reinforces this approach by emphasizing preventing illness. Policies emphasize improving disease prevention and control systems, strengthening public health emergency response, expanding community-level medical services, and building a high-quality and efficient healthcare service system. The lessons learned from past public health crises have underscored the importance of resilience and preparedness, particularly in a country with a large older population.

    Another key pillar is the promotion of healthier lifestyles. Encouraging physical activity, promoting healthier diets, reducing smoking and excessive alcohol consumption, and raising awareness of preventive healthcare are all part of a whole-of-society effort involving communities, institutions and individuals.

    At the same time, reforms are being pursued to make healthcare more equitable and efficient. Efforts include implementing reforms in medical services, health insurance and pharmaceuticals, while strengthening medical ethics and professional standards. Innovation also plays an increasingly important role.

    Ultimately, the idea of a livable China with a visible and healthy ecology reflects a broader understanding that sustainability and human health are inseparable. In this vision, development is measured not only by economic growth but also by the vitality of the people. A sustainable and people-centered future is about using China's economic progress to provide for its physical wellbeing.

    Medical care moments in China feel more human

    Bradley Blankenship, an American columnist and political analyst based in Beijing

    Based on my experiences with the medical system in China, what has stood out most is not ideology or policy rhetoric, but the practical realities of accessibility, efficiency and the way everyday medical care is handled. It fully embodies the important statements by Chinese President Xi: "We must give strategic priority to ensuring the people's health and improve policies on promoting public health." This kind of guarantee is a real warmth integrated into every medical experience.

    I have seen how quickly the system can respond in urgent situations. On one occasion, I suffered heat stroke at the beach in Sanya, Hainan Province, during a vacation, and began vomiting uncontrollably. The hotel manager immediately put me on a scooter and drove me to a nearby hospital while reassuring me along the way. From the onset of symptoms to receiving treatment took roughly an hour. In another instance, when I became seriously ill and was sent to the hospital, hospital staff promptly conducted tests, and a Chinese colleague of mine came to the hospital to see how I was doing.

    One feature I noticed is the high level of personal interaction with doctors. In my experience, physicians here take time not only to address the medical issue but also to reassure the patient. For example, I have received treatment for asthma, including during a particularly severe episode. Most recently I went to the hospital for heart-related discomfort and was very anxious about the possibility of something serious. The doctor carefully explained the tests and even shared his own experiences abroad to calm me. The results were normal, but the clear explanations and personal reassurance made a huge difference.

    The small moments - staff making an effort to communicate, people stepping in to help in emergencies, doctors taking time to reassure anxious patients - have made the experience feel more human. They shape how medical care is experienced in practice, far more than official descriptions of how a healthcare system is supposed to work. These firsthand encounters reveal the human impact of the Healthy China Initiative, demonstrating how its goals are translated into everyday realities that build trust and improve quality of life.

    A healthy, thriving life ensures national prosperity and strength

    álvaro Lopes, a comparative legal jurist currently studying Chinese at Beijing Language and Culture University

    The increasing weight put on the health of Chinese people at all phases of life accords with the shifting emphasis to high-quality development. In recent years, China has begun to experience the challenges of developed countries, with gradual increases in obesity and age-related illnesses. To face these, China finds itself uniquely equipped with increasingly medium- and long-term planning abilities and central-local policy coordination.

    A highly encouraging development that I have personally experienced here is the increasing emphasis and availability of sports, particularly among young and working-aged people. Just a few days after settling into my new home in west Beijing, I joined a local amateur football club that practices for free at newly built facilities in our neighborhood that also includes basketball courts as well as cycling and running tracks. Entire amateur football leagues, with teams composed of Chinese and foreigners alike, have sprung up in Beijing, particularly in Chaoyang district, with serious competition and demanding fitness requirements.

    China's minister of education stated on Saturday that China will begin promoting football, basketball and volleyball competitions in schools with class- and school-level leagues. In my home country of Portugal, I saw how school leagues contributed to the continued health and fitness of students into university and adulthood, as well as an invaluable means of combatting loneliness.

    Outside of school hours, I've seen an uptick in after-school sports activities, with the ice hockey and skating rinks at my local mall constantly populated by young Chinese athletes and their teachers. Recent local and international media reports noted a large uptick in winter sports activities, signaling an early success to the government's post-Beijing Winter Olympics push. At my local climbing gym, many parents are now making sure their children have a good outlet for their youthful energy and fitness needs on the climbing wall. Policies to lighten homework loads and increase awareness of the importance of life-long fitness have likely contributed to this uptick.

    Elderly people in China are also remarkably fitness-conscious by global standards. Many might take it for granted here but the ubiquitous site of groups of senior citizens dancing in squares and parks, walking and jogging clubs and even calisthenics and rehab exercises is quite an achievement and would be uncommon elsewhere.

    Overall, China is uniquely suited to rapid and large-scale social change through proactive health-related measures. The consultative aspect of the whole-process people's democracy ensures that the clearly growing demand for improved health-related infrastructure and services is heard and taken into account when formulating policy plans; while the evaluative aspect of China's system allows for ever-changing measures by which policymakers at all levels are held to account. With clear and unambiguous qualitative, non-GDP targets like raising the average life expectancy to 80 years by 2030, China's central authorities create governance incentives that guide the policy implementations of provincial and local governments which are then realized in the communities.

    As President Xi once noted, "health is the most important indicator of people's happy life." This vision lies at the heart of the Healthy China Initiative, which seeks to embed health into all policies and empower every citizen to lead a thriving life. And only when people live a healthy and thriving life can national prosperity and strength be guaranteed, and Chinese modernization be achieved.