Commentary: China's anti-Ebola efforts further enhance China-Africa community of common destiny

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi starts a visit Saturday to the three African countries worst hit by Ebola -- Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. Wang is the first foreign minister of a world major power to visit the West African region after the outbreak of deadly Ebola in 2014.

Such a move once again proves that China has never and will not stop its assistance to and care for those African brothers in need.

Quickly after the outbreak of the fatal epidemic, China was the first country to send health workers to the affected countries in West Africa, and one of the first countries making international medical donations.

In combating Ebola, China has provided four batches of assistance to 13 countries in and around the affected areas with a total amount of 120 million U.S. dollars.

So far, China has sent over 1,000 medical staffers to the affected countries, treated more than 900 patients, and trained some 13,000 medical workers for Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and their neighboring countries.

Most recently, China has pledged to donate an extra 5 million dollars to the UN Ebola Response Multi-Partner Trust Fund to support the recovery process of the affected areas.

In the post-Ebola recovery, China will actively support and participate in the building of disease control systems in Africa, and help the African countries improve their capacity to respond to public health emergencies.

Last month, Erastus Mwencha, deputy chairperson of the AU Commission, appreciated China for its support for the formation of African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (African CDC), saying Africa expects more China's engagement in reconstructing health system.

Moreover, China will help the affected countries in infrastructure building, resumption of trade and export, food security guarantee and other areas to enhance their resilient capability against crisis, as the recovery is a multidimensional task that includes not only rebuilding of the fragile health system, but also socioeconomic aspect.

A friend in need is a friend in deed. As the Liberian Foreign Minister Augustine Ngafuan Ngafuan put it, "As bad as that crisis was, it was an opportunity to know our true friends, and China distinguished itself as one of Liberia's truest friends."

He spoke highly of China, saying Liberia's history since President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf came to power in 2006 cannot be fully written if chapters are not dedicated to the very important role China has played and continues to play in the country's recovery process from decades of war. Endi