China has played key R&D role, says Gates

Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has reaffirmed the organization's partnership with China in healthcare research and development.

The wife of the billionaire Microsoft Co-Founder Bill Gates pointed out that the country was a "powerful example" in helping to eliminate malaria worldwide.

She made her remarks before the start of a panel discussion organized by the Gates Foundation and Boao Forum for Asia in Beijing last month.