Vice Premier Wu Yi Thursday called for enhancing cooperation with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to promote the development of Chinese children.  

Wu made the remarks in a meeting with visiting UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy, who will retire in May after serving as UNICEF chief for 10 years.

Wu expressed her appreciation of Bellamy's contribution to children's development in the past 10 years, thanking her for caring for Chinese children, for attaching importance to cooperating with China and for supporting China in implementing such projects as intensifying education for young girls, fighting the abduction and selling of women and children and strengthening health care for Tibetan women and children.

China, as a developing country with economic situation varying greatly from region to region, still has unbalanced development among children, Wu said.

Wu said she hoped UNICEF's assistance would go toward tackling problems confronted by Chinese women and children.

Bellamy spoke highly of China's achievements in such fields as AIDS/HIV prevention and the treatment and protection on children. She said UNICEF was willing to further cooperation with China, including collecting more funds, to make a contribution to development of Chinese children.

(Xinhua News Agency February 25, 2005)