The mission of China Medical Board is to advance health, equity, and the quality of care in China and Southeast Asia. Working in a spirit of partnership at the forefront of strategic philanthropy, CMB strives to build capacity in an interdependent world that fosters innovation in professional education, policy research, and global health.

CMB’s current program was launched in 2008 as a new initiative to strengthen scientific excellence in “critical capacities” among institutions in China and Southeast Asia to address the premier health challenges of the 21st century—equitable access to primary health care in market-driven economies so that the benefits of knowledge will be equitably shared by all people. CMB thus focuses on strengthening capacities in health policy and system sciences and the education of health professionals. In its pursuits, CMB emphasizes scientific excellence, promotes social equity, and seeks collaboration through partnerships.

In China, CMB prioritizes work in Health Policy Systems (HPS) and Health Professional Education (HPE). CMB’s HPS program seeks to strengthen academic capacity to generate intelligence for guiding improved health policies and systems operations. The program supports HPS Collaborating Programs to build institutional as well as individual capacities; its Open Competition research grants give next generation leaders opportunities to conduct HPS-related research. CMB also collaborates with Chinese partners to pioneer reforms in HPE. The work entails promoting innovations in instructional and institutional design in graduate medical education, public health, and nursing. 

In Southeast Asia, CMB is engaged in an ambitious program to develop 500 leaders for health equity over the next two decades. Launched in January, 2016, in partnership with The Atlantic Philanthropies, The Equity Initiative: Transformative Leadership for Health Equity selects midcareer professionals from across ASEAN and China (with a focus on the neighboring provinces of Guangxi and Yunnan) for leadership development, exposure to equity concepts and practices, and community building. Click here to read more about this fellowship program.