Mozambique’s National Surgical Center Officially Breaks Ground with China’s Support

On 3 August 2026, Mozambique’s President Daniel CHAPO officially attended the foundation stone laying ceremony for the National Surgical Center in the presence of the Minister of Health Ussene ISSE and China’s Ambassador ZHENG Xuan. The Center was made possible thanks to a grant of USD 40.5 million from China and forms part of the latest #FOCAC Action Plan 2025-2027.

The Center is an eight-story building with a total area of 20,300 square meters and will be able to accommodate up to 600 beds. The Center will house an emergency and trauma service, a medical imaging department, laboratories, a pharmacy, a 19-bed ICU, and 14 operating rooms. It will be one of the largest and most modern health facilities in Mozambique.

The Center aims to offer complex and specialized surgeries that were previously not available locally and required expensive foreign travel. Beyond surgery, the Center will also carry out medical research and training.

Mozambique also plans to build a National Trauma Center nearby. All these health facilities are enumerated in Mozambique’s National Health System modernization strategy.

During the FOCAC Summit 2024 (#FOCAC2024) in Beijing, China committed to building a few Joint China-Africa Medical Centers in Africa. The first such Medical Center is attached to the China-Guinea Friendship Hospital in Conakry and was inaugurated in November 2025. The second China-Mozambique Joint Medical Center is attached to the Maputo Central Hospital and opened in August 2026.

At the same time, China is doubling efforts to promote Traditional Chinese Medicine (#TCM) as an alternative form of healthcare. Every year, China has been dispatching medical teams to Africa. Over several decades, China has built over 130 medical facilities across 45 countries in Africa, including the flagship African Union Center for Disease Control (#AfricaCDC). China has also proposed the establishment of the China-Africa Hospital Alliance to expand the availability of quality healthcare.