The Chinese medical team in Sierra Leone was honored along with over 200 individuals and institutions at a ceremony on Friday for its role in the country's fight against the Ebola virus.
The ceremony was held at the State House in Freetown following the declaration of Ebola free in Sierra Leone on Nov. 7 by the World Health Organization (WHO).
President Ernest Koroma presented gold medal awards to 40 individuals and groups including his Gambian counterpart Yayah Jammeh, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Ebola Response Center, Pallo Conteh, the UN's Ebola crisis manager in Sierra Leone, Bintu Keita, and the Chinese, British and Cuban medical teams for their counter-Ebola contributions.
The medical staff who participated in the combat against Ebola, including 11 doctors who lost their lives, were also honoured by the president.
Almost 4,000 were killed in Sierra Leone since the outbreak of Ebola in West Africa was first reported in March last year, WHO figures show.
China was the first country to send supplies to Ebola-hit countries after the Ebola outbreak.
As of March 2015, China has offered aids worth around 117.15 million U.S. dollars and sent thousands of medical personnel to Ebola-hit nations.
