Xiplomacy: Building China-Africa community of health for all with dedication and action

A Chinese doctor (R) from the Chinese medical team in Ghana operates on a Ghanaian patient suffering from cataracts in LEKMA Hospital in Accra, the capital of Ghana, on Feb. 13, 2023. (Photo by Seth/Xinhua)

On missions to heal and rescue

"I could not see well in the right eye, and sometimes, after taking a few steps, it felt like I was about to fall. I came to the hospital and was diagnosed with cataract," Elizabeth Dzokpe, a retired nurse from Kpando in the Volta Region of Ghana, told Xinhua.

To help her restore sight, the Chinese medical team stationed at the LEKMA Hospital in the country's capital Accra offered a free surgery, and now Dzokpe regained a normal vision.

Dzokpe is one of the many beneficiaries of such free surgeries the medical team performed since last November. This program intends to treat as many low-income Ghanaians with cataracts as possible.

"Next to the gift of life is the gift of sight, because our sight lightens our world and makes us appreciate our existence better," said Ghanaian Deputy Minister for Health Mahama Asei Seini.

The Chinese people love peace and cherish lives, which is vividly illustrated by their efforts in international medical assistance, Chinese President Xi Jinping said in a reply letter to the 19th Chinese medical team dispatched to the Central African Republic earlier this month.

True indeed. In Botswana, the 16th Chinese medical team dispatched to the country has performed 6,081 operations on local patients, rescued 4,044 critically ill patients, and delivered 605 babies over the last two years. Working in Sierra Leone for more than a year, the 23rd Chinese medical team has treated some 18,000 patients and made multiple breakthroughs in surgeries.

"These Chinese doctors made great sacrifices, and their stories are unfolding in the continent every day. This kind of humanity should be praised, and their stories will be told from generation to generation," Benjamin Anyagre, general secretary of the Ghana-China Friendship Association, told Xinhua.

This aerial photo taken on Jan. 8, 2023 shows the headquarters building of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. (Photo by Dang Honglai/Xinhua)

Towards community of health for all

Gazing at an iconic twin tower sitting on a once derelict land full of garbage in the southern suburbs of Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, local resident Wakjira Totofa said, "It's really like a dream."

"We never thought we would see such a magnificent building in a short period," said Totofa, a civil servant who lives in the neighborhood of the building hosting the headquarters of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Totofa has witnessed the dramatic change from "nothing to something" on his daily commute. The first phase of this flagship cooperation project was completed in January, another fine testament to China's endeavor to build a China-Africa community of health for all.

In December 2015, China announced 10 major plans, including on public health, to boost cooperation with Africa in the following three years. Three years later, the country reaffirmed its commitment to building an even closer China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era. Both sides have pledged to build "a China-Africa community of health for all."

In 2021, the Chinese president proposed to work closely with African countries to implement nine programs, the first of which is the medical and health program.

"I have been impressed by China's active participation in promoting global health with a shared future. Chinese leadership under President Xi Jinping has focused on pursuing the greater good and shared interests across the world, which has boosted China's efforts in maintaining good cooperation in global health," said Emery Nzirabatinya, a Rwandan international relations expert.