A doctor from the 17th Chinese Medical Team to Senegal does an eye examination for a local patient (ALY DIOUF)

Like many other areas of cooperation, the partnership between China and Senegal in the healthcare sector is thriving. The work done by the 17th Chinese Medical Team to Senegal is proof of such healthy collaboration. In early September, the team's 13 members, now nearing the end of their mission, were awarded the National Order of the Lion of Senegal at Knight Grade, one of Senegal's most prestigious civilian distinctions.

"You have given dedicated and loyal services to Pikine National Hospital by contributing to the achievement of its objectives and providing quality care. This is the reason why the President of the Republic has expressed Senegal's gratitude to you by elevating you to the rank of Knight of the National Order of the Lion," said Abdoulaye Diouf Sarr, Senegal's Minister of Health and Social Action. Sarr paid a splendid tribute to the members of the Chinese medical team "for their commitment, rigor, professionalism and collaboration with their Senegalese colleagues." According to the minister, "the actions of the Chinese medical teams are in line with the priorities of Senegal's national health and social development program as defined by President Macky Sall."

The 17th Chinese Medical Team is the sixth of its kind to be based in Pikine National Hospital. As their mission in Senegal draws to a close, Zheng Chunsheng, head of the team, is torn between two contradictory emotions: the joy of returning home to China and the sadness of having to leave Senegal.

Abdoulaye Diouf Sarr (left), Senegal's Minister of Health and Social Action, awards the National Order of the Lion of Senegal at Knight Grade to members of the 17th Chinese Medical Team to Senegal (ALY DIOUF)

Tangible results

With a team of 13 members, including 10 doctors specializing in different fields, the 17th Chinese Medical Team set foot in Senegal in August 2017. It was immediately dispatched to Pikine National Hospital, a major healthcare institution located in the greater Dakar area, where they worked for two years in perfect coordination with local medical staff.

"During these two years, the 17th Chinese Medical Team saw 7,489 patients, performed more than 5,000 surgeries, conducted more than 20,000 tests, and saved the lives of nearly 200 critically-ill people," said Chinese Ambassador to Senegal Zhang Xun at the handover ceremony between the 17th and 18th Chinese Medical Teams in Senegal.

"Their presence has been beneficial to our institution in terms of reducing staff shortage in some of our departments, including anesthesia, intensive care, medical imaging, surgery, otorhinolaryngology, ophthalmology, emergency and laboratory," said Pikine National Hospital Director Mouhamed Abdallah Guèye.

According to Guèye, the Chinese team has greatly contributed to raising the technical level of Pikine National Hospital through various services it provided, and through its generous donations of medicines and medical equipment, with a total value of nearly 176 million CFA francs ($295,608). A special characteristic of the 17th Chinese Medical Team was that its members used to travel to nearby municipalities of Thiès, Touba, Saint-Louis, Foundiougne and Ziguinchor on weekends to attend to local patients.

Moreover, the team organized 12 rounds of free medical checkups for impoverished inhabitants in the country's interior. In addition, Guèye recalled that as part of this bilateral relationship, the Chinese Government has initiated a major personnel exchange program, which has enabled 16 staff members with different socio-professional specialties of the hospital to travel to China to receive capacity-building training.

In addition, Minister Sarr took the opportunity of the handover ceremony to applaud the good relations between China and Senegal and China's contributions in the health sector. Among the achievements, Sarr listed the construction and equipping of health facilities such as Diamniadio Children's Hospital and the donation of medicines and equipment to Pikine National Hospital. According to Sarr, China's support for Senegal's healthcare sector has also included free medical consultation programs for its impoverished communities and capacity-building programs for its healthcare workers. "In this, we should not forget the Chinese technical and support staff dispatched to hospitals in Pikine and Diamniadio to ensure patient care and hospital maintenance," Sarr said.

A long history

Chinese medical teams have been active in Senegal since 1975.

On June 29 in Foundiougne, Ambassador Zhang said that the work of China's medical team in Senegal is a testimony to the Chinese people's friendship with the Senegalese people. It also aims to support the development of health services and improve the level of medical care and well-being of the Senegalese population. Zhang was speaking at the launch ceremony of a free medical consultation campaign in the west-central part of the country, where a Chinese company is building a bridge over the Saloum Delta.

Since 1975, China has dispatched 17 medical teams to Senegal, which have travelled more than a hundred times to the country's interior cities and rural areas to provide free consultations to tens of thousands of patients, Zhang said. Putting the people at the center of politics is a key feature of China-Africa diplomacy and cooperation, he noted.

"As Chinese President Xi Jinping said in September 2018 at the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), we must make the improvement of people's well-being the starting point and ultimate objective in the development of Sino-African relations," he stressed.

According to Zhang, Sino-African cooperation must bring concrete and tangible results and benefits to both Chinese and African people. In keeping with the spirit of the FOCAC Beijing Summit, China will work with Senegal to further develop the global strategic cooperation partnership between the two countries and bring more benefits to the Senegalese population, with the aim of building a community of shared future for China and Africa, Zhang added.

(Comments to liuwei@chinafrica.cn)