ADDIS ABABA, May 4 -- A Chinese ophthalmologist team dispatched by the National Health and Family Planning Commission of China has been rendering ophthalmological services for free at Alert Hospital in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.

The team under the campaign, "Bright Journey" is composed of six specialists. Its service is expected to continue to May 15 while making technical exchanges and experience sharing with Ethiopian medical staffs, said a statement from the Ethiopian side.

The six specialists from Pecking Union Medical College hospital (PUMCH) of china arrived last Monday. They are expected to carry out site restoring operations for about 300 Ethiopian patients.

They are deployed at Alert Hospital with medical equipment of advanced technology and consumables donated by China, which will stay permanently after the mission.

"All the medicines and surgical equipment used for Bright Journey are provided by Chinese side and will be donated to Ethiopia after the activity," said a statement on the Bright Journey.

PUMCH was founded in 1921 with a good reputation both in China and abroad.

It owns a group of outstanding medical experts, medical educationists, and medical research teams and has strong technical force, according to the statement.

Dr. Dong Fangtian, team leader of the specialists to Ethiopia, said the Bright Journey is one of the medical programs in Africa promoted by the Chinese government.

"We bring the advanced technology and equipment to Ethiopia in order to improve further local ophthalmic technology level and provide benefits for Ethiopian cataract patients through the guidance at work and academic exchange," said Dr. Dong who is also a chief physician of PUMCH.

One of the members of the Chinese team is Yang Zhi Kun, a retinal specialist.

He has told Xinhua that the Chinese specialists have come to Ethiopia to provide medications and treatment to patients, especially for cataract surgical operations in Ethiopia.

He also said the Chinese specialists would carry out their medical responsibilities in ophthalmological service to help the vision of eye patients get improved.

Dr. Solomon Bussa is a medical director of Alert Hospital where the Chinese specialists are rendering ophthalmological services.

The arrival of the Chinese specialists with medical equipment of hi-tech technologies will increase the quality of services rendered at the hospital, he said.

"Actually the equipment that we have received are of hi-tech technologies, and this would alleviate the services that we have and it would increase the quality of the services. We did not have this equipment for many years and even if we want it, we cannot afford to buy it because of the high prices to find them," said Dr. Solomon.

"With this high technology equipment it would just increase and enhance the services of the eye care that we are rendering to the general public," he said.

Speaking about the profession of the Chinese specialists and the experience sharing between the Chinese and the local staff, the medical director said, "They are highly experienced ones; the retinal surgeon, the cataract surgeon; they highly are skilled people. And the knowledge and skill that they transfer to us is of high importance. It is of high value which money cannot buy."

"The cataract service has been done for many, many years. It is not the surgery that matters, but the type of surgery matters, the equipment that they use, the techniques of the surgery. This is actually high-scale, very proficient and authentic equipment and skills," he added.

The medical director expressed gratefulness to the people and government of China for the support being provided to Ethiopia in the health sector.

"We believe that this service will never stop. This must be taken as a spring board for further collaboration and cooperation which would make a tie between our two countries and, especially our two hospitals," He said.

China has dispatched continuously medical teams with 270 members to Ethiopia for the last four decades and has made big contribution to the health care services in Ethiopia, said the statement.