China boosts medical aid for maternal, child health overseas

China's foreign medical aid workers now consist of 117 obstetric and pediatric doctors who provide regular medical services for pregnant women and infants overseas and help train local medical personnel, the National Health Commission said on Monday.

Last year, Chinese medical aid teams delivered 63,800 newborns overseas, according to data released by the commission during an event held in Beijing on this year's World Health Day that spotlights maternal and child health.

The commission added that China has carried out cooperation projects in the field of maternal and child health with a number of countries and regions including Sierra Leone, Malawi, Zanzibar of Tanzania, Guinea-Bissau, Burundi, The Gambia and Cambodia.

The nation has also collaborated with the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund to implement training programs aimed at reducing maternal and newborn mortality rates in Africa. So far, 15 sessions of offline and online training activities have been carried out.

Meanwhile, a reproductive medicine center has been established in Mali with support from China. The facility delivered Mali's first test-tube baby born at a public hospital last year.

The nation has also helped build a cervical disease screening center in South Sudan, serving nearly 4,000 local people so far. In Sierra Leone, China's medical aid team carried out screening programs targeting human papillomavirus at local medical institutions.