Another installment of COVID-19 medical equipment from Chinese billionaire Jack Ma’s Alibaba Foundation arrived today, at Islamabad airport. Earlier today, an aircraft carrying medical relief supplies was dispatched from China, as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases crossed 1,350. According to the National Disaster Management Authority spokesperson, China sent another aircraft loaded with at least 50,000 testing kits to Karachi.
While waiting for the arrival of the consignment, Chinese Ambassador, Yao Jing met with a number of Pakistani officials. FM Shah Mahmood Qureshi, FS Sohail Mahmood and NDMA Chairman Muhammad Afzal were present at the occasion, welcoming the medical team and supplies from China.
Regular updates provided by the Chinese embassy on twitter revealed that “the plane carried over 10,000 test kits, 10,000 N95 masks,1 lakh Disposable medical masks, 5,000 Medical protective clothes, 5 ventilators, 11 Defibrillator monitors and some 62,000 sets of drugs for treating COVID-19”.
China In Action：Amb. Yao Jing, FM Shah Mahmood Qureshi, FS Sohail Mahmood and NDMA Chairman Muhammad Afzal are receiving the Chinese medical team who will stay in Pakistan for 2 weeks!#COVID19Pakistan #ChinaPakSolidarity @ArifAlvi @ForeignOfficePk @zlj517 @MFA_China pic.twitter.com/CXELdaRhCC
— Chinese Emb Pakistan (@CathayPak) March 28, 2020
According to the Chinese Embassy, the 8-member medical team from Xinjiang, China will stay in Pakistan for a span of two weeks. This is an exemplary step from China, as Pakistan’s COVID-19 cases are on the rise. Domestic medical teams are devoting their time and expertise endlessly. However, there is a dire need for proper guidance and sufficient medical equipment. This will help to prevent, diagnose, and treat the virus.
To mark this occasion, the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan posted pictures of the consignment on their Twitter handle. Upon departure, the Chinese COVID-19 expert team said, “We are two nations with one heart! Dear Pakistani brothers and sisters, here we come!”. This event marks one of the many instances where China has stood by Pakistan through thick and thin.
#ChinaPakSolidarity China In Action："We are two nations with one heart! Dear Pakistani brothers and sisters, here we come!" said Chinese medical team upon departure.#COVID19Pakistan! @ArifAlvi@ForeignOfficePk
@MFA_China@zlj517 pic.twitter.com/RkbzIWSXhI— Chinese Emb Pakistan (@CathayPak) March 28, 2020
Earlier this week, Chinese billionaire Jack Ma’s Foundation and Alibaba Foundation sent a cargo plane carrying medical equipment to Pakistan. The Chinese Embassy in Pakistan claims that two tons of supplies, worth Rs 67 million, were delivered to Karachi. These included face masks, test kits, ventilators and personal protective equipment.
“Collectively, the nations will receive a total of 1.8 million masks; kits for testing 210,000 people, 36,000 pieces of protective clothing, as well as essential medical equipment such as ventilators and forehead thermometers.”
The Chinese Embassy of Pakistan has been regularly posting updates on this whole endeavor on microblogging website Twitter. These tweets are constantly boasting the friendship between Pakistan and China through the hashtag #ChinaPakSolidarity.
Read more: China’s Jack Ma sends tons of COVID-19 relief materials to Pakistan
China’s consignment sent to Karachi
They also revealed that a cargo plane carrying N95 masks and other protective equipment had been dispatched to Karachi. These were received by Governor Sindh, Imran Ismail, on the 27th of March, at Karachi Airport. Speaking on the occasion, the governor said, “China had always supported Pakistan in all the testing times, the they it was helping the Pakistan government to overcome this challenge”.
Received 56,000 testing kits from China on behalf of Federal Government. Inshallah this will help us speed up the screening process. PM @ImranKhanPTI is fighting it out leading from the front along with the nation. pic.twitter.com/PYtuP3GeLi
— Imran Ismail (@ImranIsmailPTI) March 27, 2020
The governor then proceeded to commend the Pak-China friendship by saying, “the medical aid from China was a reflection of the everlasting friendship between China and Pakistan. He said the Pakistani nation was thankful to the Chinese people for this support”.
According to Imran Ismail, “Prime Minister Imran Khan had been personally monitoring the countrywide situation of the current health emergency. He said the relevant state and government officials had been giving real-time briefing to the PM on the evolving situation of the infectious disease in the country”.
He appealed to the people to stay at home and support the government’s efforts to curb the spread of the viral disease in the country.