Vietnam assists Laos in upgrading healthcare system

A ceremony took place in Laos’ Hua Phan province on January 3rd to open construction on the Hua Phan Friendship Hospital, funded by the largest ever amount of non-refundable assistance from the Vietnamese Government for the Lao Government and people.

Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Lao – Vietnam Cooperation Committee, Somsavath Lengsavad, at the inauguration ceremony (Photo: VNA)

Situated on an area of 3 hectares, with capital of over VND400 billion, the Hua Phan Friendship Hospital will have 200 sick-beds. After construction, the hospital will be equipped with modern medical facilities, while it will also be provided with human resources training and technological transfer.

After completion, it will become a place for specialised treatment of digestive, kidney and urological diseases.

Addressing the inauguration ceremony, Nguyen Chi Dung, Party Central Committee member and Minister of Planning and Investment of Vietnam, said that the project was part of the cooperative strategy between the two countries in Xieng Khouang and Hua Phan provinces, showing great care from the Vietnamese Party, State and people towards Lao residents’ healthcare, especially those in remote and disadvantaged regions.

Hua Phan provincial Party Committee Deputy Secretary, Khamvon Bounthavong, thanked the Vietnamese Party, Government and people for the great and effective assistance for Hua Phan people in particular and the Lao people in general.

According to Mr. Khamvon Bounthavong, the hospital, as a valuable and practical gift, will both better satisfy the demand for medical check-ups and treatment, and link with other hospitals for treating complex diseases, contributing to raising the quality of medical check-ups and treatment for people in surrounding provinces.

Earlier, on January 2^nd, an inauguration ceremony was also held for the Xieng Khouang Friendship Hospital in Xieng Khouang province, at a similar scale.

The two hospitals are Vietnam’s largest health infrastructure projects in northern Laos using non-refundable assistance from the Vietnamese Government for the Lao Government and people./.

( Compiled by VNF )