President Cyril
Ramaphosa on Monday welcomed the arrival of 217 Cuban doctors to support his
government’s efforts to curb the spread of
COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa.
The Cuban doctors, who will be deployed across all nine
provinces in South Africa, include health experts
in the fields of epidemiology, biostatistics, and public health and healthcare
technology engineers.
Ramaphosa said in a statement on Monday that the deployment of Cuban doctors is a demonstration of the strategic partnership and solidarity between South Africa and Cuba and a good example of South–South cooperation.
Cuba, which has confirmed, 1337 cases of the virus at home and 51 deaths, has one of the world’s highest number of doctors per capita and is renowned for its focus on prevention, community-orientated primary health care and preparedness to fight epidemic.
The country has more than 37,000 health care workers in 67 countries worldwide, according to the Cuban foreign ministry.
Cuban Ambassador Rodolfo Benítez Verson has also welcomed Cuban doctors to South Africa. .
“We are very proud of you, you are our best soldiers because you are the soldiers of the army of the white gowns created by our commander-in-chief, Fidel Castro,” Verson said.
“Your mission in South Africa is going to be a difficult one, a complex one. You will be fighting every day against an invincible enemy, a very destructive enemy and you will have to do so without your families, without your friends but we know that you are very well prepared to face any difficulty, we know that you will raise very high the name of Cuba.”
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Sunday that the strong social and political solidarity and support that exists between the two countries have been seen in various development programmes.
“As the Department of Health, we have continuously enjoyed this support through the ongoing medical training programme of South African students in Cuba,” said Mkhize.
“As Cuba did in the difficult times of apartheid, it has once again lent its hand by sending health workers who are specialised in the areas of Family Medicine, Infection Prevention Control, Case Management, Regulatory Authority, Epidemiology and Surveillance, Health Technology and Biostatistics.”
South Africa has recorded 4 546 cases, including 86 deaths, with 168 643 people tested for the virus as of Sunday.
The SA-Cuba Agreement on Cooperation in the Fields of Public Health and Medical Sciences has registered much success, the Presidency said.
Over 732 South Africans, many from previously disadvantaged communities, received their first 5 years of medical training in Cuba and have qualified as doctors since the inception of the Nelson Mandela/Fidel Castro medical training programme in 1997.
Many
others continue receiving medical training in Cuba, and will also provide in
the coming years much needed primary healthcare services to their local
communities.
(Compiled by Inside
Politics staff)
