On February 20^th, 2004, Vice Minister Zhang Yesui met with Inocencio Arias, Spanish Ambassador to China, at the latter's request. Mr. Arias passed a check valued at 194 thousand euros in person to Zhang to fund the cooperative project in poverty alleviation between the two foreign ministries for the year 2004. Mr. Arias said that the cooperation between China and Spain has been very successful since 2002 and he is very happy to have the opportunity to participate in poverty alleviation in China. Zhang expressed his deep appreciation to the Spanish government for providing funding again for the poverty alleviation efforts of the Chinese foreign ministry. He said it is another proof of the friendly relations between the two countries that the Spanish government has financed China in poverty alleviation for three consecutive years. 

In 2002, Spain provided the Chinese foreign ministry with a 60-thousand-euro development and cooperation fund under China-Spain Technical Cooperation Framework for the training program on agricultural technologies in Jinping County, Yunnan Province. By now the program has scored remarkable social and economic benefits.

When the Queen of Spain visited China in March 2003, Chinese and Spanish foreign ministries co-sponsored a briefing where Vice Minister Zhang Yesui and Mr. Angel, Spanish Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs introduced respectively to her the cooperation between the two ministries. Then the Queen of Spain presented in person a check valued at 238 thousand euros to Vice Minister Zhang. The fund was planned to be used to further finance training programs on agricultural technologies in the two counties. However, due to the need of fighting against SARS, the two sides decided to put the fund into medical use. The construction of the General Building of Jinping County Hospital cost 1.04 million yuan and the construction of Yangwan Township Clinic and village-level clinics in Malipo County cost another 1.04 million yuan.