The items are meant to enhance vital services at the hospital in its quest to deliver quality health care service to the population. Further, this latest support by China Medical Team also symbolises the strong fraternal ties that bind the two countries since establishing ties in the early days of Gambia’s independence.
Welcoming the delegation, Mustapha Bittaye, Chief Medical Director at the Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital (EFSTH), thanked Chinese ambassadors -both present and the former -for their support to the hospital, recalling that during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, China supported not only with drugs but also with personnel to strengthen the country’s response to Covid-19.
CMD Bittaye equally recalled that Chinese teams have been coming to The Gambia since the 70s to support communities such as Kundang and Kaur and have been very helpful to rural communities.
“The good thing about the support we get from China is that it is not prescribed, but that we discuss with them and determine together on areas that we need help at the hospital.”
Having identified the areas that need support, he said, they work closely towards addressing those areas.
He also spoke about the numerous capacity building programmes extended to nurses and doctors at the hospital, saying they are always appreciative to the Chinese for their immense contributions in strengthening services at the country’s main referral hospital.
For his part, Tom Zhang, Councillor at the Chinese Embassy in The Gambia, while expressing delight with the move, acknowledged that he each time he visits the hospital, he feels happy as it symbolises the friendship the two countries continue to enjoy in the diplomatic field.
The Chinese diplomat acknowledged that The Gambia and China have long history of cooperation, especially in the health sector, since the 70s, noting that this Chinese Medical Team is the 22nd batch since the arrival of the first batch in 1975.
The Chinese counsellor talked about the last Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), during which the Gambian leader, H.E. Adama Barrow, and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping discussed areas of strengthening cooperation in the health sector.
He reminded that the China Medical Team is not only working at the country’s hospital but also embarking on outreach missions in rural communities geared at enhancing the health care sector in the country.
Deputising for the Minister, Lamin Dampha, Permanent Secretary 2 at the Ministry of Health, acknowledged that The Gambia and China have long diplomatic relations, which dates to the early stage of the country’s independence.
PS Dampha pointed out that the Chinese have been sending medical doctors to the Gambia for a very long time, adding that their support is not limited to the medical sector, but cuts across diverse sectors in the country’s development initiatives.
“They are into every sector of the development and that they have been very supportive. They don’t prescribe but ask what we want and we work together on those areas,” he said.
In addition, he described their support as transformative not only in The Gambia but also in other countries around the globe.
He expressed optimism that this kind of support would continue and further thanked China for the drugs and consumables, as well as for the numerous capacity building initiatives designed for Gambians in China.
