China on right track to victory over virus: Tsinghua intl graduate

"I saw millions of people in China united with one goal – to win the battle against this epidemic," said a graduating international student from Tsinghua University.

"I have never seen such a collective dedication from a nation, turning things for the better by sacrificing personal convenience on a grand scale," said Ivana Todorovic at the commencement ceremony of Tsinghua University this year.

Todorovic was born in Bosnia and Herzegovina. She received a recommendation letter from her country's president to study at Tsinghua University. Her ambition is to contribute to the construction of the public health system in the country after graduation.

Since high school, she has helped vulnerable groups and people with disabilities in medical institutions and multiple NGOs in her country.

During the COVID-19 outbreak, she got the best opportunity to understand China.

"China's governance and health care system proves to be one of the most efficient in the world. With a population of 1.4 billion, China not only has successfully controlled the transmission of the coronavirus but also assisted many other countries across the globe", Todorovic said.

She was actively engaged in searching international connections in the healthcare industry, first for China and later for her own country. She was able to organize donations of personal protective equipment for her country on the network she built through her department in particular and Tsinghua University in general.

Todorovic also said the rules and initiatives set by the university and Chinese government had everyone's health and safety as the first priority. This made her feel safe and confident that China was on the right track towards victory.