Malaysia and China agreed to cooperate in health and education following the signing of two Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) in Kuala Lumpur today.

It is a move that will further strengthen existing bilateral ties between the two countries, Bernama reported.

Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar and his Chinese counterpart Li Zhao Xing signed the MoU at a ceremony which were witnessed by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao at the Prime Minister's Department.

The cooperation in health covers human resource development, primary health care, pharmaceuticals, control of infectious diseases, medical and health research development, food safety and traditional and complementary medicine.

On the MoU in education, Education Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said in a statement, the cooperation involved the exchange of academic staff, teachers, experts and students through programmes which were mutually beneficial to both countries.