Government starts Masaka Hospital expansion

The ground-breaking ceremony on Thursday was presided over by the Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente and the Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda Wang Xuekun.

Ngirente thanked China for partnering with Rwanda on this important project, saying the hospital's renovation and expansion will further enhance its capacity to provide advanced healthcare services.

"Infrastructures like this one are a great contribution to our vision, to develop specialties, sub-specialties and train much-needed health professionals in a short time," the prime minister said.

The project will complement other strategic health services in the catchment area, including the IRCAD Africa research center, the Heart Center, and other initiatives that will significantly transform lives and turn Kigali into a major health hub, Ngirente said.

Wang, for his part, said the project is one of the China-aided projects in Rwanda that leaders of both China and Rwanda have given great importance to.

"This project marks a milestone of the highest infrastructure cooperation between our two countries," he said. "Upon completion, it will turn Masaka Hospital into a modern hospital with a size of more than 5,6000 square meters and 837 beds."

Wang said that despite the vast geographical distance between China and Rwanda, the two countries have enjoyed brotherly relations for more than half a century, particularly since the exchange of visits by the two leaders in 2017 and 2018.

"Fruitful cooperation in various fields has been enormously expanded between our two countries. Our political exchanges keep growing with good momentum. Economic and practical cooperation has achieved a lot with bigger projects ongoing and trading ties increasing," he said.

"We built Masaka Hospital in 2011 which cares for local patients. I am happy we are here to expand it," Wang said.

"We have seen 22 medical teams and more than 270 Chinese doctors in Rwanda. They have contributed a lot to the local resilience and to the health of Rwandan people," he said.

China dispatched its first medical team to Rwanda in 1982.

Wang said China is committed to working with Rwanda to promote the wellbeing of its people, adding that Beijing will continue to support the development of Rwanda.

The expansion and renovation project, which is set to be completed by July 2025, will include scaling up the hospital's capacity to receive up to 2,000 patients per day.