Thomas Grein, the prestigious German epidemiologist who led a joint expert team from the Chinese Ministry of Health and the WHO, made the remark after concluding his inspection to Guangxi region from Jan. 15 to 20.

The experts inspected with great care medical institutions in Guangxi, including centers for disease control and prevention (CDC)and designated SARS hospitals during their six-day inspection.

The local governments at all levels in Guangxi took great responsibilities for the SARS prevention and control, noted Grein.

Grein spoke highly of the effective operation of the national disease reporting system and surveillance system in Guangxi, considering them robust and timely.

New SARS control measures have been taken in Guangxi since December 2003, including the daily reporting system for fever patients, in a bid to rule out a possible reoccurrence of SARS.

China has so far reported three diagnosed SARS cases this year after the spring outbreak of the epidemic in 2003, all from south China's Guangdong province.

(Xinhua News Agency January 21, 2004)