Children from the President's Village Orphanage in Seychelles received numerous items as part of a donation from the Chinese Embassy on Tuesday.

The items, which included furniture, toys, food, and stationary, among others, come from an initiative by the First Lady of China, Peng Liyuan, as part of the China-Africa joint initiative "Warm Children's Heart" and the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development.

The donation was made to the President's Village through Seychelles' First Lady Linda Ramkalawan, patron of local orphanages.

In her address, Ramkalawan shared that "It is said that the best way to make children good, is to make them happy. So, I hope the children will be happy with all these beautiful gifts given to them today." .

The donation was made to the First Lady Linda Ramkalawan by Mu Jianfeng, the Chinese chargé d'affaires. (Ministry of Youth, Sports & Family) Photo License: CC-BY

Ramkalawan received the donation on behalf of the children, from Mu Jianfeng, the Chinese chargé d'affaires in the presence of the Minister for Family Affairs, Youth and Sports, Marie-Celine Zialor, along with staff and children from the orphanage

"Children are the future of our nations. Their health and happiness are the concerns of all societies across the world," said Jianfeng in his address.  

He added that the aim of the "Warm Children's Heart" project is to prioritise the agenda of children's welfare and pull resources from all concerned to create a better environment for children's growth.

The President's Village located in the western Mahe district of Port Glaud, was opened in 1987 by the late former First Lady Geva Rene, the patron of the National Council for Children (NCC) at that time. The state-run facility houses 30 residents, which include 10 boys and 20 girls.

Chinese doctors fave free health consultations. (Ministry of Youth, Sports & Family) Photo License: CC-BY

As part of the donation, a group of Chinese doctors was also present to give the children free health consultations and tests.  

Mirenda Hollanda, the senior child support officer at the Village, said the visit of the Chinese doctors was opportune as "it is very difficult for us to take the children to the hospital all the time for specialised care and so to have these doctors here will help the children as various tests will be done to check for diabetes, heart health, and other. It is a benefit for our staff as well."

Hollanda expressed her gratitude to the Chinese Embassy for the donation. She said that most of the donation will be used to furnish a toddler's room, where kids play among themselves.

"The Village is a beautiful home where children are living in a big family. We hope the donation will make everyone's stay more comfortable and cosier," said the Chinese chargé d'affaires.