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Overview

20th Chinese Medical Team dispatched to Zimbabwe

Commitment Year•2023Country of Activity•ZimbabweDirect Recipient Country of Incorporation•ZimbabweSector•HealthFlow Type•Free-standing technical assistance

Status

Project lifecycle

Completion

Pipeline: PledgePipeline: CommitmentImplementationCompletion

Timeline

Key dates

Commitment date
Feb 28, 2023
Start (actual)
Mar 8, 2023
End (actual)
Mar 11, 2024

Geospatial footprint

Map overview

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The project involved the 20th Chinese medical team being dispatched to the Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals (also known as Parirenyatwa Hospital) in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe. More detailed locational information can be found at https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/399300868.

Stakeholders

Organizations involved in projects and activities supported by financial and in-kind transfers from Chinese government and state-owned entities

Funding agencies

Government Agencies

  • Hunan Provincial Health Commission

Receiving agencies

Government Agencies

  • Government of Zimbabwe

Loan description

20th Chinese Medical Team dispatched to Zimbabwe

Narrative

Full Description

Project narrative

On February 28, 2023, the 20th Chinese medical team departed from Hunan Province for Harare, Zimbabwe, to begin a one-year medical mission. A welcome and farewell ceremony was held in Harare on March 8, 2023, to receive the 20th team and bid farewell to the 19th team. During their assignment, the team was based at the Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals (also known as Parirenyatwa General Hospital) in Harare. Led by Dr. Ouyang Bin, the 11-member team included specialists in respiratory and critical care medicine, internal medicine, surgery, urology, pediatrics, orthopedics, radiology, anesthesia, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), acupuncture, and massage rehabilitation. As part of their outreach, the team reportedly traveled to a different province each month to conduct free medical clinics. They also operated out of the Zimbabwe–China Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture Center established in 2022. TCM specialists Dr. Wang Zhiming (deputy team leader) and Dr. Hu Sha managed the center and provided over 5,000 TCM services during the team's tenure. On March 11, 2024, an official handover and award ceremony was held to mark the departure of the 20th team and the arrival of the 21st. President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Acting Minister Counselor Cheng Yan of the Chinese Embassy, and Counselor Huang Minghai attended the event and delivered speeches. On March 14, 2024, eight of the eleven team members returned to Hunan, while three applied to remain in Zimbabwe. China has been dispatching medical teams to Zimbabwe since 1985. These deployments are coordinated by the Hunan Provincial Health Commission.