Aleksandr Khodzhayev
MINSK, 30 October (BelTA) – Belarus is developing cooperation in healthcare with Africa along three main avenues: medical services, personnel training, and pharmaceutics, Belarusian Healthcare Minister Aleksandr Khodzhayev told the media following a meeting on ways of advancing cooperation with African countries hosted by the Belarusian president, BelTA has learned.
The minister stated that people in any part of the world are interested in quality healthcare. The African continent is no exception in this regard. Although the healthcare systems of Belarus and African countries may differ, they share the same aspiration to provide quality medical care. “Systems can be different. Ours has been built over decades. We have our own expertise, we are self-sufficient, we can develop our technical base and use high-tech equipment. The situation in African countries varies, but overall, the vision of what a healthcare system should be is the same. I am convinced that African countries in general know and strive to have quality healthcare,” he said.
Based on this aspiration, it is necessary to advance further cooperation in healthcare, Aleksandr Khodzhayev is convinced. At present, it is developing along three avenues: medical and educational services and pharmaceutics.
Speaking about the export of medical services, the minister pointed to positive trends. “We have managed to significantly increase exports compared to last year,” he said. In his words, this was achieved through meticulous work to raise awareness of people on another continent about Belarus and the availability of quality medical assistance there. “After all, these are not just brochures that we send out. This is an opinion based on experience when people come and get assistance,” Aleksandr Khodzhayev noted.
As for educational services for healthcare specialists, the situation is stable. According to the Healthcare Ministry, about 500 citizens of African countries receive medical training in Belarus every year. Belarusian educational institutions have a good reputation due to the fact that foreign graduates return home to provide quality medical services and spread the word about where they were trained, the minister noted. In his words, the current task is to gradually increase the number of students.
Aleksandr Khodzhayev sees significant, though not yet fully realized potential in pharmaceutics. “I am convinced that we will succeed here, too,” he said.
Since Soviet times, Africa has known about the high qualifications of Belarusian medical workers and has been inviting them to work. “African countries are, of course, interested in our healthcare workers coming to work there, they ask to send certain specialists,” the minister said.
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