By George Pemba in Beijing, China:
First Lady
has emphasised the need to collaborate in HIV and Aids service delivery.
Mutharika made the remarks on Tuesday at the HIV and Aids gathering of wives of heads of State and government held on the sidelines of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the China-Africa Cooperation at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing.
“It is for this reason that we, in Malawi, would like to commend our Chinese counterparts for creating a platform for enhancing the partnership and collaboration in the Aids fight,” she said.
She said the University of Peking in China established a partnership with Malawian institutions through its department of Public Health, adding that this would see Malawians benefitting significantly from China’s expertise.
“This will help reduce the patient-to-doctor ratio which has been high for some time in our country,” she said.
Mutharika said China is also providing support, in form of medical equipment and medical supplies, to various health facilities across Malawi, a development that, she said, is contributing to Malawi’s vision of ensuring that every health facility should have adequate supplies of medicine.
“I have committed and dedicated myself to championing the health of women on the understanding that good health has a bearing on the attainment of education and is positively related to good economic performance for individual households but also for the entire nation.
“I am happy to observe that our focus on promoting and prioritising public health in Malawi resonates well with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s development cooperation strategy and the recent China Belt and Road Initiative which also recognises health as an essential component within the ‘Healthy China 2030’ vision,” Mutharika said.
Speaking earlier, when she opened the meeting, themed ‘China and Africa: Join Hands for a Future Free of Aids’, China’s First Lady, Peng Liyuan, said combating HIV and Aids is a global priority and that China and Africa have developed a productive cooperation in that battle.
“We have old friends and new partners gathered here because we have a shared goal – join hand in hand to fight HIV and Aids,” she said.
Tshepo Motsepe, wife of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, said: “It is critical to focus efforts and resources on prevention of the disease which is a global public health problem.
“Let us all work together to stand against HIV infection across the African continent and across the world as the HIV epidemic has no boundaries. Together we can make a difference in curbing the spread of HIV,” she said–Mana
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