PHNOM PENH: A China-backed Mekong children's heart care project was officially launched in Cambodia on Monday (March 30), aiming at delivering life-saving treatment to children with congenital heart disease (CHD).
Funded by China through the Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, the landmark project is implemented by the Mekong Institute, in close partnership with the Ministries of Health of Cambodia and Laos, with technical support from the Fuwai Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.
"The project will screen at least 40,000 children in Cambodia, including 10,000 ultrasound screenings, provide full-cycle treatment for at least 40 children with CHD, and train more than 100 healthcare professionals," a press release said.
It added that the project will also provide essential medical equipment and support advanced training for Cambodian doctors.
Suriyan Vichitlekarn, executive director of Mekong Institute, said the project reflected China's firm commitment to advancing the Global Development Initiative and accelerating progress toward the UN 2030 Agenda, as well as shared determination to improve access to care for children with CHD.
"The project recognized the fact that there are a lot of children in Cambodia that suffer from this type of disease, and therefore, in order to reduce the number of the children affected with this disease, we developed this project.
The project is funded by the government of China through the Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, so the project is implemented by Mekong Institute in close collaboration with Fuwai Hospital in China and Ministry of Health in Cambodia, and the Ministry of Health in Lao PDR.
We hope that the project can contribute to reducing the number of children affected by this heart disease in Cambodia and Lao PDR.
Chinese support will help facilitate the peer-to-peer cross-country learning, and with this, I hope it will not only address the public health issue, but foster close cooperation among Mekong countries and China." - Xinhua
