Chinese biotechnology company BGI Group announced last week that it has given Angola 40,000 kits for detecting new variants of the COVID-19 virus.

Separately, the Chinese Embassy in Luanda issued a written statement quoting Chinese Ambassador to Angola Gong Tao, speaking when the kits were turned over, as lauding the contributions made by BGI and other Chinese companies to the effort to counter the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mr Gong said China would cooperate more closely with Angola to help save the lives of Angolans.

BGI has greatly improved the ability of Angola to test for COVID-19, and Angola is thankful for Chinese help, the Chinese Embassy statement quotes Angolan Health Minister Sílvia Lutucuta as saying.

Last September an Angolan newspaper, Jornal de Angola, reported that BGI had been contracted to build four laboratories for testing for COVID-19, in the Angolan provinces of Luanda, Uíge, Lunda Norte and Huambo.