Remarks by Chinese Ambassador to Lesotho Yang Xiaokun at the Farewell & Welcome Reception for Chinese Medical Teams

First of all, please allow me to pay respects to:

His Majesty King Letsie III,
The Right Honourable Prime Minister,
Honorable President of the Senate,
Honorable Speaker of the National Assembly,
His Lordship the Chief Justice,
Honorable Deputy Prime Minister,
Honourable Cabinet Ministers, especially
Honourable Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Relations,
All government officials,
Members of the 19th and 20th Chinese Medical Teams to Lesotho,
Representatives of Chinese corporations in Lesotho,
Friends from Media Houses,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Welcome to the Chinese Embassy. We are here to bid farewell to the 19th Chinese Medical Team and welcome the 20th one. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Relations, and the Basotho people for your support to the medical cooperation between our two countries.

I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to the 19th medical team and its members. Your efforts and dedication will remain in the land of Lesotho. I warmly welcome the 20th team and its members. I am sure you will make your contributions to the health and well-being of Basotho people with your expertise and professionalism. To both teams, I would like to ask you all to remember the spirit of Chinese medical teams, which is "fearlessness of hardship, willingness to sacrifice, devotion to patients, and boundless love".This is the spirit you have practiced for the past year and will practice for the coming year, and the rest of your career.

Ladies and gentlemen,

This is my second time witnessing the rotation of the Chinese medical teams in Lesotho. This year's rotation, however, carries special significance. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Africa. To commemorate this important milestone, China and Africa have jointly designated this year as the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges.

H.E. Wang Yi, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, attended the launching ceremony of the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges at the African Union Headquarters, shortly before his historic visit to Lesotho this January. In his keynote speech, he called on both sides to take this Year as an opportunity to continuously enrich the substance of the all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the new era. To this end, China and Africa will jointly host nearly 600 cultural and people-to-people exchange activities in 2026 to enhance exchanges and mutual learning between the two civilizations.

In February, the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges was officially launched in Lesotho, at the Embassy. Medical and health-care services are closely linked to the fundamental well-being of Basotho people. Cooperation in this field is an essential component of people-to-people exchanges between our two countries. Taking the Year as an opportunity, China stands ready to further deepen medical cooperation with Lesotho, bringing more advanced medical technologies, training more health-care professionals, and making even greater contributions to the health and dignity of the Basotho people. I would like to share with you two latest developments.

We are advancing the Paired Hospital Cooperation Mechanism Project. This project aims to establish an intensive care unit (ICU) at the China-aided Maseru District Hospital, which is expected to strengthen the development of intensive care services and enhance the capacity for diagnosing and treating critical diseases in Lesotho. This project is designed to meet Lesotho's urgent needs. Lesotho needs it, and China responds. We should have signed the Agreement today, but due to force majeure, the signing ceremony has been postponed. A new date will be set in due course. However, the delay of signing will not affect the continued advancement of our cooperation. Last month, Wuhan No.1 Hospital dispatched four experts to the Maseru District Hospital to conduct ICU training. In the next phase, ICU doctors and nurses from Lesotho will also be sent to China for further professional training.

We have actively supported Lesotho in combating HIV/AIDS and in improving the well-being and dignity of women, especially girls. The project "Eliminating the Triple Threat in Girls and Young Women in Lesotho", jointly implemented with UNAIDS, is set to be launched in April. China committed over 2 million US dollars to the project. This project aims to prevent new HIV infections, reduce gender-based violence (GBV), and address early and unintended pregnancies (EUP) in Mokhotlong District. This will be achieved through strengthening the capacity of the health system, enhancing community-led responses, delivering people-centered services, and ensuring the provision of essential commodities, equipment, and infrastructure. With over 20,400 expected beneficiaries, I sincerely hope this project willbring tangible benefits to local communities.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Standing here in Lesotho, we must follow the latest development in China and in the world. China's "Two Sessions" concluded just two weeks ago. The "Two Sessions", short for the annual meetings of China's top legislature, the National People's Congress, and the top political advisory body, the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, are important political events in China. During these meetings, the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) for national economic and social development was officially approved. At a time when conflicts continue to rage in the Middle East, civilians are displaced, and the global economy faces mounting challenges, China has once again injected much-needed certainty and stability into the world by presenting a concrete blueprint and a clear vision for its national development.

At a time of growing uncertainty, China not only focuses on its own development but is also ready to make even greater contributions to the world, guided by the belief of "leaving no one behind". At a press conference during the Two Sessions, H.E. Wang Yi emphasized that China's diplomatic service will continue to be an enabler of high-standard opening up, and pledged to work with our African brothers and sisters to draw inspiration from our civilizational heritages, forge stronger bonds between our peoples, and carry forward our friendship for generations to come.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The diligent work of the 19th Chinese medical team, together with the arrival of the 20th, is a vivid testament to our commitments. To conclude, I would like to wish the 19th medical team a safe journey back home. I hope the 20th team will start your work in a very prompt manner. Together with Basotho friends, we will ensure that the tree of China-Lesotho friendship grows more thriving and vibrant through mutual support, and that the China-Africa community with a shared future continues to move forward steadily through solidarity and collaboration.

Thank you.