The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday broke ground on a 171,500-square-meter facility in Beijing as part of efforts to improve infrastructure and research capability, and promote the high-quality development of the country's disease control system.

The new facility is a Phase 2 project of the China CDC, and is part of the 102 major construction projects listed in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) that lays out the blueprint for the country's social and economic development.

It is located in Beijing's Changping district and is adjacent to the first phase, which was completed in November 2006.

The Phase 2 project will comprise research and laboratory animal buildings, information centers and graduate teaching buildings that cover the fields of chronic diseases, nutrition, maternal and child health, environmental health, radiation protection and occupational diseases.

"With its completion, the total area of laboratories will more than double and reach 171,000 sq meters along with those located at the Phase 1 site," said the China CDC.

Shen Hongbing, director general of the China CDC, said that boosting infrastructure is the bedrock of high-quality development and the project represents an important move to modernize and build the capacity of the center.

As part of China's overhaul of its disease control system, the administration of the China CDC was transferred from the National Health Commission, the top health authority, to the National Administration of Disease Prevention and Control, a newly established central level disease prevention and control body, in July.

Shen said that the country's disease control reforms have been progressing steadily.

According to the China CDC, a new scientific research building of its National Institute of Environmental Health will be equipped with a variety of equipment and laboratories to facilitate research on environmental risk exposure and their effects on health as well as public health and protective measures against infection, which will inform roll-outs of public health and environmental health work.

A building for pathogen biology is expected to enhance the testing capability of microbes and improve the ability to rein in the spread of infectious illnesses. The laboratory animal center will provide sites and equipment for conducting a wide range of experiments such as exposure to radioactive substances and inhalation of toxins.

"The Phase 2 project will further improve the national-level disease control institution's capability in basic sciences, meet demands for high-quality development in the middle and long term, bolster reforms and development of disease control systems, and help to build an A-rated disease control center," said the China CDC.