On 19 June, Chinese ambassador Ma Jianchun handed over a consignment of facemasks and forehead thermometers donated by Chinese government to the Office of the First Lady.
Present at the ceremony were First Lady Fatoumatta Bah-Barrow, Foreign Minister Dr Mamadou Tangara, and Minister of Basic and Secondary Education Claudiana Cole. The supplies were presented by the First Lady to MoBSE, and will be used to protect the health, security of children who are supposed to return to school.
Ambassador Ma spoke highly of First Lady Bah-Barrow’s care and charitable work for grassroots communities over the past few years. He expressed his confidence that the donated medical supplies will help strengthen the efforts of the First Lady and bring support to those in need. Ambassador Ma also elaborated on China’s people’s-lives-first principle in its fight against the coronavirus, and China’s vision of building a community with public health security for all and a community with a shared future for mankind. Ambassador Ma expressed China’s readiness to continue working closely with The Gambia in defeating the pandemic, and in promoting socio-economic development.
First Lady Bah-Barrow asked Ambassador Ma to convey her kind regards and best wishes to Madam Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping. She also appreciated China for supporting her efforts in promoting the well-being of Gambian people.
Minister Tangara expressed The Gambia’s appreciation for China’s continuous support to The Gambia in the fight against Covid-19. He echoed President Xi Jinping’s call for China-Africa solidarity in prevailing over the pandemic, which was voiced at the recent Extraordinary China-Africa Summit on Solidarity against Covid-19.
Minister Cole expressed her delight at receiving the medical supplies, which had “come at the right time” and would significantly contribute to the resumption of classes for schoolchildren who had stayed home for months.
First Lady Bah-Barrow and Ambassador Ma together opened the boxes and checked the medical materials.
