BEIJING - China is planning to open more Confucius Institutes to teach traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) overseas in order to promote this age-old medical science, deemed the essence of Chinese culture, said Vice Minister of Health Wang Guoqiang.

Wang, who is also director of the State Administration of TCM, said Monday: "We are working closely with the Ministry of Education and the Confucius Institute headquarters to open more TCM Confucius Institutes and add TCM courses to the syllabus of existing Confucius Institutes,"

"TCM is very well received abroad, regardless of nationality or ideology," Wang said. However, he added, China lacks talented practitioners who have both a good command of TCM and speak a foreign language.

The Confucius Institutes, named after the ancient Chinese philosopher, are non-profit public institutions for promoting Chinese language and culture in foreign countries.

To date, there are more than 350 Confucius Institutes and 500 Confucius Classrooms in 101 countries and regions. Two are TCM Confucius Institutes based respectively in Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Melbourne, Australia, and in London South Bank University (LSBU).