China-aided hospital completed in Mauritania SOURCE: CGCINT MAURITANIA On November 27, 2010, Zhang Xun, Chinese ambassador to Mauritania, went to the Arafat region Nouakchott, to chair the completion ceremony of China-aided Friendship Hospital with Prime Minister Laghdaf. The activity was attended by 10 Mauritanian cabinet ministers, including the economic minister, health minister, and social affairs minister. The health minister spoke highly of the Chinese government and people extending supports in all aspects all these years. He expressed gratitude to the Chinese and Mauritanian constructors for their hard works. He stressed that this was the best festival gift of the Chinese people to Mauritania. The Mauritanian government put the completion ceremony as an important component to celebrate the 50th anniversary of independence of Mauritania. He said Mauritania will work closely with the Chinese party to manage and use the hospital well. The Friendship Hospital, aided by the Chinese government, was constructed as a part of the eight measures that Chinese President Hu Jintao proposed to aid Africa in the China-Africa Forum Beijing Summit in November 2006. Located in a populous slum of Arafat district, the southern part of Mauritanian capital city Nouakchott, the hospital is a modern comprehensive hospital. The hospital, with a total floor area of 7410.2 square meters, has 88 sick beds and diversified functions, including clinic service, emergency treatment, operation rooms, X-ay section, clinical laboratory, and inpatient department. The No.1 building has two floors, and other buildings have one floor. The architectures adopt frame structure, capable of resisting magnitude 7 earthquakes and second-grade fires. The hospital was constructed by China Geo-Engineering Corporation International Ltd. (CGC) on May 30, 2009, and completed on November 7, 2010.
