Workers unload equipment for new Serbian COVID-19 labs at the Belgrade Airport in Belgrade, Serbia, on April 15, 2020. Equipment for two laboratories in Belgrade and Nis worth over 700,000 euros, including a donation of 570,000 euros by Chinese companies, arrived in Serbia on Wednesday. The laboratory in Belgrade will be able to test 2,000 people per day as soon as from next week, while the one in the southern city of Nis with a testing capacity of 1,000 per day is under construction. Both of them will be set up by Chinese biotech company BGI Group. (Photo by Nemanja Cabric/Xinhua)
BELGRADE, April 15 (Xinhua) -- Equipments for two laboratories in Belgrade and Nis worth over 700,000 euros, including a donation of 570,000 euros by Chinese companies, arrived in Serbia on Wednesday.
The shipment was welcomed at the Belgrade Airport by representatives of Serbian government, Chinese Embassy in Serbia as well as the donors -- Chinese BGI Group and Zijin Copper.
The laboratory in Belgrade will be able to test 2,000 people per day as soon as from next week, while the one in the southern city of Nis with a testing capacity of 1,000 per day is under construction. Both of them will be set up by Chinese biotech company BGI Group.
"BGI sent a team of experts. All six of them are veterans from Wuhan, who have the experience and the expertise of building and working in a big laboratory. We know best of all how to build, operate and optimize a lab for detecting the coronavirus," said Xiong Tao, Vice President of BGI Global Development.
Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy Aleksandar Antic appreciated the support from China, saying "Serbia will triumph over this virus. Serbia is firmly determined not to give up and to use all its resources, to beat this virus. I am truly thankful to our Chinese friends and partners who are a part of this front together with us, and we will definitely win together with them."
Berislav Vekic, State Secretary in the Ministry of Health of Serbia said that the friendship between Serbian and Chinese people resulted in a valuable donation that will significantly increase Serbia's testing capacities.
"This will resolve all technical difficulties that we were facing with in diagnosing COVID-19. By setting up this laboratory at the Clinical Centre of Serbia, we will be able to perform 2,000 daily tests just in Belgrade," Vekic said.
The Zijin Copper is the major donor of the establishment of the new laboratory in Nis.
"As a mining company, it is always our original intention and a historical mission to develop the mining industry to benefit the whole society. It's especially in difficult times we feel we need to do something," said Ling Dexi, Deputy General Manager of Serbia Zijin Copper.
Chinese Ambassador Chen Bo said that the donation is based on the agreements signed between Serbia and the Chinese companies two days ago.
"It is very important to increase testing capacities for the COVID-19 in order to put epidemics under complete control. We are friends of steel and we will fight together until the final victory over the virus," she said.
So far, Serbia has confirmed 4,873 cases of COVID-19 by performing 26,278 tests. The death toll from the disease stood at 99. Serbia has been in a state of emergency since March 16.
