Chinese community provides aid to Senegal's COVID-19 fight

Ever since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Senegal on March 2, Chinese companies based in the West African country, together with the Chinese community, have spared no effort in helping with donations of medical supplies and equipment to support the Senegalese fight against the virus.

As one of the first African countries affected by COVID-19, Senegal has so far reported a total of 5,783 confirmed cases, including 82 deaths and 3,859 recoveries.

On June 19, the Chinese technical assistance team based at the Chinese-aided Children's Hospital of Diamniadio on a maintenance mission deployed by Jiangsu Construction Engineering Group Co Ltd, donated a batch of medical supplies to the hospital, including surgical masks, protective gowns, goggles, disposable gloves and shoe covers.

It also included some much needed medical equipment, such as 3 channel ECG portable electrocardiographs, bedside monitors and blood pressure meters.

"The Extraordinary China-Africa Summit on Solidarity against COVID-19 just took place, and it was such a success. At this time, we want to fully implement the 'defeating COVID-19 with solidarity and cooperation' theme of the summit," chief of the Chinese technical assistance team Gong Zhen says.

Having been working in Senegal for more than 11 years, he wants to show the Senegalese the sincerity and solidarity from China during this difficult time.

Director of the Children's Hospital of Diamniadio, Mame Fama Dieng Gaye, says the Chinese technical assistance team supported them "for the normal operation of the hospital, both technically and administratively".

As well as the donation from Jiangsu Construction Engineering Group, her hospital will also benefit from some of the Chinese government's donation, which arrived in the country on June 17 in Dakar, says Gaye.

"I want to take this opportunity to thank, on behalf of Senegalese Ministry of Health and Social Action and the board of the hospital, all the support provided by the technical assistance team and Chinese government to Children's Hospital of Diamniado," she says.

As the largest and the most technologically advanced pediatric hospital in Senegal, the Children's Hospital of Diamniadio has played a significant role in deepening the bilateral relations and friendship between the Chinese and Senegalese people since its opening.

But it doesn't stop there. Under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, the Senegal Women and Children's Hospital project was launched in 2018 and was completed at the end of 2019. It is in the same compound with the Children's Hospital, and can accommodate 84 beds and three operating rooms.

With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Senegalese government decided to use it as a second treatment center of COVID-19 patients.

"In March, we received a request from the Chinese embassy in Senegal to rearrange the facilities of the Senegal Women and Children's Hospital. It was Senegalese Ministry of Health and Social Action that ordered the addition of 100 more beds in the hospital to accommodate COVID-19 patients displaying mild symptoms," Gong says.

"At the same time, we had to both assure the maintenance work at the Children's Hospital of Diamniadio, and carry out the adjustment work in the Women and Children's Hospital," Gong explains, adding that they worked overtime and finished everything three days in advance.

Gong's team also held a seminar on COVID-19 prevention and forwarded the "diagnosis and treatment protocol for novel coronavirus pneumonia" to the board of hospital, which gained a very positive response.

Chinese Ambassador to Senegal Zhang Xun says that Chinese companies and Chinese community in Senegal actively participated in Senegal's fight against COVID-19.

"They took concrete action to interpret China's principal of building relations with Africa based on sincerity, practical results, affinity and good faith, and China's efforts to build a community with a shared future for mankind," Zhang says.

Xinhua