Traditional Chinese medicine has been accepted by more than 120 countries and regions in the world, according to a conference held in Beijing recently.

More than 3,000 clinics of traditional Chinese medicine have been opened in Britain. Some 2.5 million British people spend a total of 90 million pounds annually to receive treatment of traditional Chinese medicine, including Chinese herbal medicine, massage and acupuncture, according to the Second Session of the Conference on the Development of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

In France, there are 2,600 clinics of traditional Chinese medicine with 7,000 to 9,000 acupuncturists.

The number of clinics of traditional Chinese medicine in the Netherlands exceeds 1,500. People who receive needle therapy account for 15 percent of the country's total population.

The United States has more than 20,000 traditional Chinese acupuncturists and 400 companies specializing in the sale of Chinese herbal medicine.

To date, at least 40 countries have opened schools on acupuncture. Over 50 medical agreements signed between China and other countries contain cooperation in traditional Chinese medicine. Chinese medicine in general has won legal status in manycountries, including Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

In China, more than 3,000 enterprises are engaging in traditional Chinese medicine processing. In 2004, the traditional Chinese medicine industry generated 90 billion yuan (approximately US$11.1 billion) of output value, accounting for 26 percent of China's entire pharmaceutical section.

(Xinhua News Agency November 14, 2005)