Posted by By Bekai Njie
A Seven-man delegation from the privately owned Guangdong New South Group Company Limited in Beijing, China, was on July 26, 2018, received by the permanent secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
International Cooperation and Gambians Abroad, Mr. Ebrima O. Camara, in his office in Banjul.
The team was led by the Gambian ambassador to China, His Excellency Faye Ceesay. The four-day visit to the country was aimed at establishing cooperation with The Gambia government with a view to eradicating malaria in the country. The Group proposes to launch an anti-malaria programme in The Gambia, which has been tested and widely acclaimed as a success in stopping malaria becoming the killer it is known to be.
In welcoming the delegation, Permanent Secretary Camara underscored the importance of partnership to help address the malaria problem. He expressed hope that the anti-malaria programme if implemented will be a key success for the government of The Gambia, noting that malaria is a killer disease; the elimination of which would be a desired outcome for The Gambia.
The chairman of the Board of Directors of Guangdong, Mr. Zhu Layi, said they intended to eliminate malaria in The Gambia through artemisinin, an anti-malaria medicine that is extracted from sweet wormwood plants that are native to China.
He added that the company is a diversified company engaged in manufacturing traditional Chinese medicine, property development, hotel service, energy development, and financial services with business across more than 20 cities in the Chinese mainland along with several overseas locations such as Singaphore, Australia, Kenya and Nigeria.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended artemisinin as effective cure for malaria and the company has acquired patent protection in 38 countries for its anti-malaria medicines.