I. Brief Introduction of the First Three Batches of Aid

Since the outbreak of Ebola, the Chinese Government has taken the lead in responding to the appeal of the affected countries and the World Health Organization (WHO). Starting from April to September this year, China delivered three batches of emergency relief items to the affected countries by chartered planes. In addition to providing cash, food, disease prevention materials, China also set up laboratories and holding centers in Serra Leone, dispatched several expert groups to affected countries and requested the local Chinese medical teams to stay on the job. The total amount of these three batches of aid to relevant countries and international organizations is worth of 250 million yuan RMB (USD 41 million). And nearly 200 Chinese medical experts took part in the epidemic prevention endeavors in the affected countries. While assisting Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in fighting Ebola, China also helps to enhance the capacity building of the 10 surrounding countries and the African Union (AU) on Ebola containment. The Chinese side walks the talk and stays result-oriented in honoring its promise swiftly, playing a leading and exemplary role, and winning itself accolades of all the stakeholders.

II. The Fourth Batch of Aid

On 24th October 2014, Chinese President Xi Jinping, in a meeting in Beijing with the visiting President of Tanzania Jakaya Kikwete, announced the fourth batch of China's aid to fight Ebola outbreak–that is an assistance package worth of 500 million yuan RMB (USD 81.7 million) to relevant countries and international organizations.

The Chinese side will provide urgently-needed items including treatment beds, ambulances, pickup trucks, motorcycles, incinerators, protection equipment to the three affected countries and build a 100-bed treatment center in Liberia where the epidemic is most serious and send doctors and nurses there for its operation. China will strengthen its soft aid on public health through sending public health experts and consultants to the three countries, facilitate and join the efforts of the local governments on epidemic prevention and control, introduce China's experience and provide guidance to improve work plan and technical guidelines. Meanwhile, more Chinese public health personnel will be dispatched to train local health and prevention and control personnel. China will also donate USD 6 million to UN Ebola Response Multi-Partner Trust Fund to support UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) to carry on the task.

Besides, China will launch a program for China-Africa Public health cooperation. The program will include:

1. Holding 12 training sessions on public health and epidemic prevention and control for the three affected countries, African Union and ECOWAS in 2015;

2. Integrating the resources of China-aided hospitals, anti-malaria centers, screening labs, medical teams and other Chinese public health facilities in Africa to carry out joint research on tropical diseases;

3. Helping African countries build platforms of public health information and networks for epidemic prevention, control and monitoring.

China will actively participate in international cooperation, strengthen coordination and cooperation with UN and WHO, participate in the meetings of the Core Group of the Global Ebola Response Coalition, nominate people to work as high-level officials in UNMEER and carry out cooperation with US, France, UK and other countries in epidemic analysis, human resources training, testing and treatment, information sharing.

The fourth batch of China's aid is unprecedented, with more extensive contents and the focus of the aid turned from providing humanitarian emergency relief items to epidemic treatment and prevention and establishment of public health security system so as to address both "symptom and the root cause" of the outbreak, enhance the capacity of the crisis response of the affected countries and establish a long-term mechanism on public health in terms of epidemic management and control. It also aims to consolidate UN's role as the leader and coordinator in fighting Ebola.