Opinion: China-Africa solidarity in action amid COVID-19 fight

Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-13 17:48:20|Editor: huaxia

Members of a Chinese medical team pose for a photo upon their arrival at the airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, April 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Shoubao)

As the two partners jointly tackle the ravaging coronavirus pandemic, their ties -- featuring sincerity, real results, amity and good faith -- have fully demonstrated the true value behind China's vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- For decades, the China-Africa friendship has weathered vicissitudes at every critical juncture.

As the two partners jointly tackle the ravaging coronavirus pandemic, their ties -- featuring sincerity, real results, amity and good faith -- have fully demonstrated the true value behind China's vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, African countries have offered support for China's fight against the epidemic. In return, amid the spread of COVID-19 in Africa, China has extended a helping hand by providing various forms of support and assistance for its African brothers.

A Chinese medical expert is welcomed by locals upon her arrival in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, April 16, 2020. (Xinhua)

On Tuesday, a China-assisted makeshift hospital was handed over to the Nigerian government to shore up its responses to the coronavirus outbreak.

China has sent medical expert teams to Africa's five sub-regions with their neighboring countries covered, upon the arrival of a group of 12 Chinese experts in Zimbabwe on Monday together with medical supplies including ventilators, testing kits, masks and protective suits.

Moreover, Chinese medical experts have held nearly 30 video meetings with their African counterparts, and Chinese medical teams have conducted nearly 400 training sessions on the continent, with over 20,000 people trained.

A medical expert from Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University communicates with Kenyan counterparts via a video call in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, March 22, 2020. (Photo by Gao Xiang/Xinhua)

From curbing the virus' spread to accelerating vaccine research and development, from border prevention and control to community management, from clinical treatment to personal protection, China has been sharing its experience with Africa, particularly communities hard-hit by the epidemic.

Such acts of kindness and solidarity have garnered widespread praise. Chairperson of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat said last month that the two sides are both friends and comrades-in-arms, whose destinies are closely linked.

Beyond Africa, China has been striving to bolster international cooperation against the novel coronavirus to fulfill its responsibility as a major country.

Staff unload Chinese medical supplies from an airplane at the Kotota International Airport in Accra, capital of Ghana, April 6, 2020. (Xinhua/Xu Zheng)

The Chinese government has so far provided supplies to more than 150 countries and international organizations, while Chinese enterprises have also donated medical supplies to more than 100 countries and international organizations.

The virus recognizes no borders. Fortunately, cooperation knows no boundaries.

At this critical moment, countries should join hands to replace their differences with solidarity and eliminate prejudice with reason. Doing so would foster greater synergy to fight the virus.

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