Echinococcosis is an important public health problem in Mongolia, which severely restricts the socio-economic development of Mongolia. Mongolia has limited investment in disease control, and China has accumulated considerable and valuable experience in the field of prevention and control. With the support of a small project of the National Health Center for Parasitic Diseases, four experts from NIPD and one expert from the Xilingol League Hospital in Inner Mongolia went to Mongolia for a five-day visit from March 27 to March 31, 2018. The purpose of this visit is to understand the prevalence of Mongolian echinococcosis status, gaps and needs, and then put forward China-Mongolia cooperation policy recommendations in terms of echinococcosis control.

From March 28 to 29, 2018, the delegation took part in the training programme on surveillance and diagnosis of the China-Mongolia echinococcosis in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia. O.Ariuntuya, Technical Officer of the Emerging Diseases Surveillance and Response, Food Safety of the WHO Representative Office in Mongolia, D.NARANGEREL, Director of the Emergency Office of the Ministry of Health of Mongolia, and TSOGBADRAKH, Director of the National Centre for Zoonotic Diseases (NCZD), Mongolia, attended the opening ceremony. Dr Wu Weiping, team leader of the delegation with 2 team members, ie, Zhang Haobing and Ulan Tuya shared information on Chinese experiences on the prevalence, prevention and control strategies, as well as diagnosis, and treatment of echinococcosis. Dr Amgalanbayar from NCZD introduced the current status of echinococcosis in Mongolia. Qian Yingjun, Associate Researcher and Ding Hao Research Intern Investigator conducted questionnaire research on the status of health care in Mongolia, the basic needs and expectations, and key areas of China-Mongolia cooperation. After the training course, the delegation visited the NCZD and the Chinese Embassy in Mongolia to conduct on-site interviews to further understand Mongolias health policy and future cooperation proposals from different perspectives. On March 30th, the delegation visited the Mongolian Dundgovi province to conduct on-the-spot investigations. The delegation visited the provincial health department, branch center of zoonotic diseases, veterinary hospital, and laboratories, respectively. In addition, the delegation also interviewed local technical staff, patients, as well as household herders to investigate of local living environment and health needs.

In general, this visit to Mongolia greatly promoted the understanding and exchange of information between China and Mongolia. In particular, the prevention and treatment of echinococcosis in Mongolia has just started with poor national control of strategy, whole national picture of the echinococcosis situation, and intervention and technical capacities. Most of researches implemented there focus on basic researches such as laboratories. At present, there is no China-Mongolia collaborations in public health investment. Furthermore, Mongolia shows high interest in bilateral cooperation in echinococcosis control, including strategies, technologies and products, and has a strong desire to jointly conduct echinococcosis control programs between China and Mongolia. According to the results of the visit, the delegation proposed that cooperation focus on capacity building to carry out timely training programs, especially in diagnosis and treatment. In terms of ways, it is recommended that the cooperation start from pilot areas with priority areas, and then to scale up according to the results.