China-Africa healthcare cooperation expanding

China and African countries are continuing to develop closer ties in healthcare, with the potential for broad cooperation being further explored, said experts in the field.

Under the framework of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the Belt and Road Initiative, China has been actively building the "Health Silk Road", by sending medical teams, implementing talent training, promoting infectious disease prevention and control, carrying out healthcare assistance, popularizing traditional Chinese medicine and signing cooperation agreements.

Last year, workers at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention moved to their new headquarters, which was built using Chinese aid.

The building of the new Africa CDC HQ, located in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, was announced as the flagship project of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

The project, constructed by China Civil Engineering Construction Corp, was completed in January last year, and covers a construction area of 23,500 square meters. The project includes an office building for more than 400 people and a testing facility with 10 laboratories.

It is the first African disease control center on the African continent with modern office and experimental facilities.

Chinese healthcare companies have been expanding their footprint in Africa in recent years.

Shenzhen-based BGI is a genomic sequencing company that has cooperated deeply with African countries. On April 30, the company inked a deal with the Rwanda Biomedical Center and provided 20,000 HPV tests for local women to promote screenings for cervical cancer.

Albert Tuyishime, director of the Disease Prevention and Control Department of the Rwanda Biomedical Center, said cervical cancer is a global healthcare challenge, especially for countries with limited medical resources.