The Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in The Gambia, Ma Jianchun, on Saturday handed over a consignment of medical supplies and sewing machines to the Office of the First Lady.
The consignment, comprising 10,000 medical masks, 1,000 N95 respiratory masks, 100 protective suits, 100 safety goggles, 79 infrared thermometers and 15 sewing machines, were handed over to Madam Fatou Bah Barrow, the First Lady, at State House.
The medical supplies came from Guangxi Zhuang regional government in Southern China, which is a twin city to Banjul. The Chinese Embassy in Banjul added 15 electronic sewing machines.
“I would like to express admiration for the efforts of the Gambia government and people in fighting the coronavirus,” Mr. Ma said.
As wearing face masks in public is now mandatory, the Ambassador expressed the hope that the sewing machines could, through the First Lady’s office, show his country’s gesture in helping boost the production capacities of locally-made face masks.
The Gambian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mamadou Tangara, described the pandemic as an “exceptional crisis” that requires urgent attention of all actors to effectively combat it.
He acknowledged that this is third in a series of support from the People’s Republic of China to The Gambia in recent months.
From the medical consignment donated by Jack Ma Foundation, to a consignment from the Chinese First Lady through the Office of the Gambian First Lady and now, a provincial government in China.
“We cannot thank you enough for your support,” Tangara said. “When we talk about a community of shared future between China and Africa, this is a typical demonstration of it,” he added.
