The 30 Chinese medical teams to the Republic of the Congo have helped foster a deep friendship between the two countries, said President of the Republic of the Congo Denis Sassou Nguesso in an interview aired on Friday evening.
Sassou Nguesso made the statement in the interview with China Media Group (CMG) in early September while he was in Beijing for a state visit and attending the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
Since 1967, China has sent 964 doctors in 30 batches to the Republic of the Congo. Chinese doctors have treated about 5 million patients and performed about 150,000 operations in the country.
Targeting the high incidence of ophthalmic diseases due to strong sunlight in the Republic of the Congo, the China-Republic of Congo Friendship Hospital, inaugurated in 2013, set a special center on treatment of such diseases.
"We are planning further development of the China-Republic of Congo Friendship Hospital, which was jointly inaugurated by President Xi Jinping and myself in Brazzaville. The hospital is expected to introduce more modern medical technologies in the future. People in the Republic of the Congo hold great confidence in Chinese doctors, and this trust was developed not only from (the friendship hospital) in Brazzaville, but also in other areas in the country. Chinese doctors have been taking care of our people, during which they have built a harmonious relationship," said Sassou Nguesso.
Chinese medical teams in Republic of Congo help foster deep friendship: president
Tax and administrative fee reductions have boosted the development of China's manufacturing industry, as the sector posted a 4.6 percent year-on-year growth in total sales revenue in the first eight months, latest data from the State Taxation Administration showed on Friday.
During the period, the sales revenue of the manufacturing industry accounted for 29.7 percent of the combined sales revenue of all industries, 0.8 percentage points higher over the previous year. This shows that the "bedrock" role of the manufacturing industry in the national economy becomes more prominent and the sector is moving towards the medium- to high-end development featuring high intelligence and green development.
"From January to August, the combined value of digital technology products and services purchased by enterprises in the manufacturing industry went up 10.7 percent year on year, driving the sales revenue of intelligent equipment manufacturing growing by 11.5 percent. The total value of energy conservation and environmental protection services purchased by industrial enterprises above designated size soared 19.1 percent, reflecting the increased efforts of these enterprises in conserving energy and controlling pollution," said Dai Shiyou, head of the administration's policies and regulations department, at a press conference.
Industrial enterprises above designated size are companies with annual revenue from principal business reaching or above 20 million yuan.
The administration's data indicated that a host of tax and administrative fee reduction policies have effectively reduced burden on manufacturing enterprises.
From 2018 to 2023, newly introduced tax and fee cuts, tax refunds, and deferred tax and fee payments for manufacturing enterprises exceeded four trillion yuan (about 567 billion U.S. dollars), accounting for more than 30 percent of all tax and fee concessions, the largest share among all industries.
"From January to August this year, tax and fee cuts and tax refunds for supporting sci-tech innovation and the development of the manufacturing industry totaled more than 1.8 trillion yuan," Rao Lixin, the administration's deputy director, said at the press conference.
After the large-scale equipment renewal and consumer goods trade-in campaign was launched in early March, the total value of new machinery and equipment purchased by enterprises nationwide from April to August was up 5.6 percent over the previous year.
During the period, new energy vehicle and second-hand car sales volume soared 38.4 percent and 6.2 percent, respectively. The sales revenue of refrigerators, TVs, furniture and sanitary ware all logged positive growth.
China's manufacturing sector posts 4.6-pct growth in total sales revenue: data
