The Chinese embassy in Botswana held a ceremony on May 7 to transfer Shandong province's medical donations to Botswana to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chinese Ambassador H.E. Dr. Zhao Yanbo said that since the start of the pandemic, China and Botswana have been fighting it together. The Chinese government and Chinese enterprises have already donated several batches of medical supplies to Botswana.

Tai'an, a city in Shandong, has a sister city relationship with Francistown, the second-largest city in Botswana.

Zhao said that Shandong province has been closely monitoring the situation in Botswana and donated epidemic prevention to the country as quickly as it could, demonstrating the strong friendship between the two places.

Zhao said that "a true friend is more precious than gold," and that as the first country to donate emergency medical supplies to Botswana, China is focusing on the effectiveness of its assistance and sharing its experiences in fighting the epidemic, rather than making empty promises or playing numbers games.

Chinese Ambassador H.E. Dr. Zhao Yanbo (right) hands medical donations from Shandong province to Dr. Lemogang Kwape, the Minister of Health and Wellness of Botswana, on May 7. [Photo/WeChat account: embassy-in-botswana]

Zhao expressed hope that the supplies would help Botswana defeat the pandemic as soon as possible and get its local economic and social development back on track.

He also said that after the epidemic, China-Botswana relations will be even stronger than before.

Dr Lemogang Kwape, the Minister of Health and Wellness of Botswana, sincerely thanked Shandong province for its assistance and support.

"I immediately noticed the words 'When people are determined, they can overcome anything' printed on the donations. This is exactly the spirit we should uphold in the face of the pandemic."

Kwape said that with the help of China, epidemic prevention and control work in Botswana is progressing smoothly and the number of cured cases is increasing. He said that Botswana will gradually lift its national lockdown as planned and resume normal economic and social life soon.

He added that Botswana attaches great importance to its relations with China and looks forward to further strengthening cooperation with China in public health and other fields after the epidemic.