ADDIS ABABA, May 19 (Xinhua) -- BGI Health Ethiopia, a subsidiary of China's biotech company, has won acclaim for its technology and knowledge transfer endeavors to propel Ethiopia's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The BGI Health Ethiopia administers Huo-Yan Air Lab inside the premises of Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, Ethiopia's main international hub and Africa's busiest and leading gateway.

Eyuel Fikru, one of the Ethiopian health experts working as local team coordinator at the Huo-Yan Air Lab, said the company has introduced the latest technologies and equipment to conduct COVID-19 testing and has shared good knowledge on modern COVID-19 testing technology with local health professionals.

The laboratory conducts up to 1,000 COVID-19 tests per day using a rapid detection and diagnosis technology and notifies results three hours before passengers get on board to travel to China and other parts of the world.

According to Fikru, the laboratory plays a significant role for Ethiopian airlines to conduct infection-free flights and help the East African nation fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

BGI Health Ethiopia PLC Administration Director Saron Tamirat also lauded the accuracy of the testing services of the lab.

BGI Health Ethiopia also opened the first Chinese reagent factory in Ethiopia in September 2020, which has a production capacity of 6 million SARS-COV-2 RT PCR detection kits per year. The testing kits are widely used in Ethiopia and in other African countries for antigen rapid tests, particularly at airports and land entry checkpoints.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service

GLOBALink | Chinese company wins acclaim for technology transfer to aid Ethiopia's COVID-19 fight