Medical workers are seen on a ceremony marking the closing of the temporary hospital of Jianghan, in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province, March 9, 2020. The temporary hospital of Jianghan, which was converted from Wuhan International Conference and Exhibition Center, closed on Monday afternoon. With a total of 1,564 beds, it received its first patient at 9 p.m. on Feb. 5. Over the past 34 days, the temporary hospital of Jianghan received a total of 1,848 patients, saw 521 patients being transferred to other hospitals and 1,327 patients discharged. It had the most available beds, admitted the most patients and saw the most discharged patients among all the temporary hospitals in Wuhan. (Xinhua/Fei Maohua)
Lao students who are currently stranded in the central Chinese city of Wuhan are receiving assistance from the governments of Laos and China, the Lao government has confirmed.
The two governments have assisted 43 Lao students who have been stranded in Wuhan due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 as well as 87 more in other provinces, local daily Vientiane Times reported on Thursday.
In China, the government has been assisting all foreign students, both in Wuhan and other provinces.
Students confined to campuses in Wuhan have been given food, other daily essentials, dormitory accommodation, and healthcare. In the meantime, they are continuing their studies online and via video, said the report.
The Lao Ministry of Education and Sports, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a joint press conference on Tuesday to report on the condition of Lao students in Wuhan and other Chinese cities.
Lao Minister of Education and Sports and a co-chair at the press conference, Sengdeuane Lachanthaboun, said “all of the Lao students in Wuhan and in other provinces are safe, and none of them have contracted the virus.”
Also speaking at the press conference, Lao Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Thongphan Savanphet said the ministry has asked the Lao consulate-general in Changsha, southern Hunan province, to closely monitor the situation, and to report to the ministry.
Lao Ministry of Education and Sports and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have provided 15 million Lao kip (some 1,685 US dollars) for the students as a goodwill gesture.
“The National Taskforce Committee for COVID-19 prevention and control will continue to assist Lao students in China. We are asking the government to provide 200 US dollars a month for each student and are waiting to submit this proposal to the government,” Thongphan said.
In addition, the committee will seek funding from other sources to support Lao students and the Chinese government, according to the report.
