China donates 130 ventilators to help Philippines battle COVID-19

MANILA, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- China, through its Embassy in Manila, has donated 130 ventilators to the Philippines as part of its commitment to helping the country fighting the COVID-19 COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Embassy said on Thursday.

Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian handed over the ventilators to Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin during a ceremony at the Philippines' Department of Foreign Affairs headquarters.

With the last batch of 50 ventilators, Huang said all 130 ventilators donated by the Chinese government have been turned over to the Philippines.

"The Chinese side looks forward to the early distribution of the aforesaid ventilators to various medical institutions so as to help the Philippines fight the COVID-19 pandemic," the embassy said.

Noting the current pandemic situation in the Philippines, the Chinese Embassy has been donating cash and medical supplies to Philippine medical institutions to help healthcare workers and frontliners fight the pandemic.

The embassy said it will continue to donate urgently needed medical equipment such as the high flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy machine to the Philippines.

The Philippines' Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently approved the Chinese drug Lianhua Qingwen to enter the Philippine market.

"It is believed that (the drug) contributes to the fight against the spread of COVID-19 in this country and help the patients with mild and moderate symptoms recover," the embassy added.

China vowed to continue to provide support and assistance to the Philippines in combating the disease.

"(China will) stand together with the Philippine government and people to jointly tackle the challenge of the pandemic," the embassy added.

Besides the Chinese government, many Chinese companies and foundations as well as individuals have also pitched in, donating medical supplies, protective equipment and COVID-19 test kits to the Philippines.

The Philippines now has 147,526 confirmed COVID-19 cases, including 2,426 deaths and 70,387 recoveries.