Sanofi marches further into China's rural market

The China subsidiary of French pharma major Sanofi (Euronext: SAN) on October 8 signed a strategic agreement with the Association of County Hospital President, a government-backed organization aiming to improve clinical practices in China’s rural areas, reports The Pharma Letter’s local correspondent Wang Fangqing.

Under the agreement, Sanofi and the association, which was initiated in May by Wang Delong, former deputy minister of China’s Ministry of Health, will focus on training medical talent in major chronic diseases including oncology, diabetes, respiratory disease and cardiovascular disease, all  among Sanofi’s core businesses.

China has over 5,000 county-level hospitals nationwide, but they in general lack medical talent and essential skills that could match hospitals in big Chinese cities, causinghigh mortality rate and unnecessary financial burdens in rural areas, according to the association.