Mali receives 300,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine donated by China

A shipment of 300,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine donated by China arrived in Bamako, capital of Mali, on Jan 26.

Chinese Ambassador to Mali Chen Zhihong and Malian Minister of Health and Social Development Dieminatou Sangare attended the vaccine handover ceremony.

Sangare expressed her gratitude to the Chinese government on behalf of Malian transitional president Assimi Goita, the transitional government and the people of Mali. She said that China has always provided selfless support to Mali and Mali is willing to continue to deepen cooperation with China.

China has provided Mali with several shipments of anti-pandemic supplies, which have strongly supported Mali's fight against the pandemic, she said, adding that the current situation in Mali has proven that the Chinese vaccine is effective and reliable.

She said she hopes the public will actively get vaccinated, build a barrier against COVID-19 and defeat the pandemic at an early date.

Chen said the pandemic continues to spread and vaccines are an important weapon to defeat it. After the vaccine donation last year, he said, China again donated 300,000 doses of vaccine to help Mali's government and people cope with COVID-19. This fully reflects the profound traditional friendship between China and Mali and the good relationship and connections of their peoples as they make joint efforts in fighting the pandemic, he added.

China always considers the COVID-19 vaccine as a global public good to ensure its accessibility and affordability in developing countries, said Chen, adding that China is applying the concepts of putting people and their lives first and closing the immunization gap with concrete actions and is making efforts to promote global solidarity against the pandemic.

China is willing to continue to make joint efforts with Mali and further strengthen the two countries' cooperation in health and other areas, so as to build a community with a shared future for health between China and Mali and benefit the peoples of both countries, he said.