Chinese Health Minister Visits Cameroon

His Excellency Chen Zhu, Minister of Health of the People's Republic of China says his four-day working visit to Cameroon is to further develop existing cooperation ties between both countries particularly in the health domain. He was speaking to the press on Saturday, January 12, 2013 at the Nsimalen International Airport in Yaounde.

He was received upon arrival by Cameroon's Health Minister, Andre Mama Fouda and H.E. Wo Ruidi, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to Cameroon, amongst others. "In the future, our cooperation should be further developed to benefit our peoples because we can learn from each other," he confided.

After a working session with the Chinese Medical Mission and a visit to the River Nyong yesterday, Sunday January 13, 2013, H.E Chen Zhu will be received in audience this morning, January 14, 2013 by the Minister of Public Health. He will later in the afternoon preside the ceremony to hand over gifts to the Yaounde Gynaeco-Obstetric Hospital. In the evening, he will be guest at a State dinner offered by Andre Mama Fouda.

Tomorrow, Tuesday January 15, H.E Chen Zhu will be in Douala to appraise ongoing work at the new Gynaeco-Obstetric Hospital in Yassa, Douala which will have a 300-bed capacity and will be one of the most important in its category in the sub-region.

Health ministry officials say the working visit is an opportunity to highlight milestones in cooperation since the signing of the first bilateral health cooperation agreement between both countries in October 1, 1975. In effect, major achievements in 40 years include development of health infrastructure, 16 two-year medical missions, donation of medical equipment to Chinese-constructed hospitals, anti-malarial drugs, research, financing and scholarships to local health personnel.

H.E. Chen Zhu is a Paris-trained physician specialised in hematology. With more than 300 articles published in scientific journals, Dr. Chen Zhu was considered in 2010 by Forbes Magazine as the third most influential person in the world in the health domain.