The 17th Chinese medical assistance team has accomplished its mission in Togo and left for China Wednesday.

The 21-member medical team from China's Shanxi province, divided into two units, worked in the central hospital of Lome and in the northern city of Kara. During their two-year stay in the African country, the Chinese doctors provided medical services to local residents, earning high praise from Togo's officials and people.

Zhang Bingwen, who worked in the general surgery ward of Lome's central hospital, told Xinhua before his departure that the medical team had done a great job. They had not only cured local patients, but also trained many local medical workers, a feat which promoted cooperation between China and Togo.

In the past two years, they carried out 210 surgical operations, most of which were hernia, prostate, digestive tract and kidney operations, Zhang said. He added that several of his local assistants had made great progress, two of them now being able to perform surgery independently.

Xia Lixin, an orthopedic doctor in charge of the medical unit in Kara, said he had conducted more than 270 surgical operations. The unit had also helped establish a surgery ward in the hospital, which was often visited by patients from nearby Mali and Burkina Faso.

The 18th Chinese medical assistance team for Togo arrived in Lome on Aug. 20. The unit for Kara has been working there since Saturday.

For 30 years, China has provided medical aid for Togo, dispatching medical teams and annually donating medications.

(Xinhua News Agency August 27, 2009)