The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (the “BMGF” or the “Foundation”) is committed to “attach particular importance to sanitary operations which promote energy and resource efficiency, waste volume reduction, resource recovery and recycling, the use of cleaner technologies and the promotion of renewable resources.” Particularly through its Reinvented Toilet (RT) initiative, the Foundation aims to promote sustainable resource efficiency and innovation in sanitation to save and ensure safe energy, water, and materials.

After the reform in 2018, the Chinese National Healthcare Security Administration was newly established. Public hospitals remain the dominant buyers of medical devices and investors in facilities. Data from the website of the National Health Commission indicated that by 2020 China had 35,394 hospitals, which offered over 7.1 million beds and received 3.32 billion patient visits. China’s central government has set the goal of improving its citizens’ well-being by implementing the national healthcare strategy, “Healthy China 2030”. Building up the hierarchical medical system across the country is one of the top priorities. This initiative includes plans to establish and strengthen the capability of medical institutes and clinical labs.

These facts open the opportunity for upgrading existing toilet systems and manufacturing new reinvented toilet facilities here, especially for the Chinese healthcare sector. Such activities should be based on commercially proven technologies, should be cost-competitive, and can use the existing infrastructure with few modifications.