China’s experience

Arktek is one of China’s innovations providing effective technology-driven health solutions to Africans in recent years. Ted Chaiban, UNICEF’S Director of Programs, believes that China’s advanced medical technology and successful experience can also be applied to African countries.

Chaiban also spoke highly of China’s research and use of the nutritional packets for children under three in the impoverished areas to cope with the malnutrition problem over the past 15 years.

The nutritional packet consists of a soybean-based supplement fortified with vitamins and minerals commonly lacking in Chinese infants and children. One pack of 12 grams per day can satisfy an infant’s nutritional needs and make up for the micronutrient deficiencies.

“China’s experience can provide meaningful reference for improving nutritional status of infants in poor areas in Africa and Asia,” said Chaiban.

“We [UNICEF] work with China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC) to encourage this cooperation. We provided our suggestions, such as focusing on primary healthcare and sustainable technology, not just [on] high-end and expensive ones, but also simple innovations, like the Arktek device,” he told Chinafrica. Chinese startup, the battery-powered device is used for one-step gene testing that can be as fast as 10 minutes from blood sample to result. It was adopted in the list of WHO Emergency Quality Assurance Mechanism for Ebola virus disease testing in Africa in 2015, according to the company.

“Most African countries, including Botswana, aspire to have accessible and necessary health infrastructure so as to improve the health of families and communities,” said George. “Public health, however, is still a challenge for many African countries. We therefore need partners, like China, to cooperate in this regard,” he said.

Public health is among the 10 major China-africa cooperation plans for 2016-18. China plans to help Africa improve the availability of health and diagnostic services and commodities, and enhance Africa’s capacity for independent and sustainable development in the field of medical care and health, according to the Forum on China-africa Cooperation Johannesburg Action Plan announced last December.

“Chinese companies are encouraged to invest in African countries for localized production and to improve health products’ accessibility,” said Feng Yong, Deputy Director General of NHFPC’S Department of International Cooperation, at the Innovation of International Medical Aid Seminar, part of the 2016 Beijing Forum for Global Health held on August 19-20.

According to Feng, a meeting will be held on November 21-22 in Shanghai, with a theme to improve accessibility of health products in Africa, and boost industrial capacity cooperation in the medical and health sector. Comments to liujian@chinafrica.cn