There is enormous potential to strengthen cooperation between China and Panama, and the progress will bring benefits to both Asia and Latin America, said Panama’s First Lady in an exclusive interview with Xinhua in Beijing.

Positive results of bilateral collaboration are expected in poverty relief, children’s development, HIV/AIDS prevention and anti-discrimination efforts, according to Lorena Castillo de Varela, First Lady of the Republic of Panama.

Castillo, also special ambassador for UNAIDS in Latin America, paid a five-day visit to China in late April at the invitation of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries. Her itinerary included activities in Beijing, Xi’an and Hong Kong SAR.

As China and Panama are both economically strong, closer association between the two countries could help promote the growth of both Asia and Latin America, she said.

Admiring China’s efforts in lifting people out of poverty, the veteran journalist also shared Panama’s experience in motivating underdeveloped communities to become self-sustaining, keeping children in school and improving social equity.

Calling “left-behind children” a phenomenon that happens everywhere adults migrate to big cities for employment, Castillo proposed that both countries work together to provide adequate education and enriching scholastic and extracurricular activities for children.

Castillo said that by working together, prospects are good for the realization of a number of targets, including China’s goal to eliminate poverty by 2020, Panama’s eradication of child labor by 2020, and for the world to halt the HIV epidemic by 2030.

Castillo is also the Global Spokesperson for Zero Discrimination, a UN initiative that aims to put an end to discrimination against people living with AIDS. She invited Chinese people to join in the worldwide campaign for “Zero Discrimination” and the call for equality among all humans.