Providing a Vital Service
The Diamniadio Children’s Hospital, a cooperative Sino-senegalese venture, is swamped with patients daily
Sitting in one of the many waiting rooms of Diamniadio Children’s Hospital (DCH), Aissatou Cissé patiently waits for her turn. That morning, she brought her two sick children from the Senegalese capital of Dakar all the way to Diamniadio, a new city being built at the other end of the Dakar Region.
Since her first visit to the DCH, she has been full of praise for the new institution. Like her, almost all the patients travel long distances to be there. This is the case of Ibrahima Ndiaye, who came from Rufisque with two sick students, as well as Fatou Seck, who traveled from Parcelles Assainies in Dakar. What Cissé appreciates above all else in this new healthcare institution is the modern equipment.
The DCH is one of the most visible results of Sino-senegalese cooperation. It is one of the 10 completed projects of pediatric hospitals built by China in Africa. Its construction was co-financed by the governments of China and Senegal at a cost of 5 billion CFA francs ($9 million) and 500 million CFA francs ($900,000), respectively. Inaugurated in January 2014 by Senegalese President Macky Sall, the DCH effectively began operations in August 2012.
According to Abdou Cissé, head of Administrative and Financial Services of the hospital, the DCH has a capacity of 140 beds. It is a pediatric hospital that accommodates children up to 15 years of age in its four service hubs - the Pediatric Medical and