A musical performance at the ceremony (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi, (VNA) – Officials and staff members of Vietnam’s level-two field hospital in South Sudan held a ceremony at the base in Bentiu of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on February 27 to mark the 64th Vietnamese Doctors’ Day (February 27).
The event was attended by Deputy Defence Minister Nguyen Chi Vinh, who was leading a Vietnamese delegation on a working trip to South Sudan, Vietnamese Ambassador to the UN Dang Dinh Quy, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) Pham Ngoc Minh, Director of Vietnam Peacekeeping Department Hoang Kim Phung, and Director of the Military Medical Department Nguyen Xuan Kien, along with representatives from the UN and units at the Bentiu base.
Head of the Bentiu Field Office Hiroko Hirahara thanked the Government and the VPA for sending the field hospital to South Sudan. She praised the great efforts and effective contributions made by the hospital staff to the peacekeeping operation in South Sudan.
Hirahara said she appreciates the proactiveness, professionalism and expertise of the hospital staff, stressing that they have become an important part of the Bentiu base.
UNMISS Chief Medical Officer Ibal Mohd said staff members at the Vietnamese field hospital treated 550 patients during just four months they took over the work from the UK field hospital, which is an impressive figure for a level-2 field hospital at a UN peacekeeping mission.
Addressing the ceremony, Deputy Defence Minister Nguyen Chi Vinh hailed the performance of the Vietnamese field hospital, saying that he is proud that the hospital staff members have proved that Vietnam is making active and effective contributions to safeguarding world peace.
On the occasion, the Deputy Defence Minister, Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy and the guests were treated to Vietnamese dishes cooked by the hospital staff members.
Vietnam deployed a level-2 field hospital with 63 staff members to the UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan in October 2018. Earlier, 29 Vietnamese officers had performed peacekeeping tasks in the Central African Republic and South Sudan.-VNA
