On 17 October, 2014, Chinese Ambassador's Wife Mao Xuehong joined Mrs. Sia Nyama Koroma, First Lady of the Republic of Sierra Leone to hand over food items to Hastings Ebola Treatment Centre. Mrs. Khadiya Sam-Sumana, Second Lady of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Ms. Madina Rahman, Deputy Minister of Health and Sanitation, Mr. Ibrahim Pateh Bah, Member of Parliament for Constituency 92 were also present at the hand-over ceremony. Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) and Awoko Newspaper covered the event.
Madame Mao stated that China shared the same hard feeling with Sierra Leone of the bitterness the country is going through, and as a true friend of Sierra Leone, China will stand side by side with Sierra Leone to jointly fight against Ebola. She hoped that the food items donated by the Chinese Embassy would contribute to the smooth operation of the health center, and strengthen people's confidence in wining the battle against Ebola.
Mrs. Koroma spoke highly of China's support to Sierra Leone's fight against Ebola. She said that Sierra Leone is in need of every support that will help prevent the virus from further spread, in need of treatment for those that are already infected and in need of help for the long-term problems caused by Ebola. She indicated that China's support to Sierra Leone is significant, and Sierra Leone's history on Ebola will not be complete if China's contributions are not mentioned.
The food items donated to Hastings Ebola Treatment Centre include 100 bags of rice, 100 bags of onions, 100 gallons of cooking oil, 50 bags of corn soya blend (corn flour), 100 bags of cooking salt, 10 cartoons of jumbo magi, 500 bundles of drinking water and one isolation unit filter bag.
