Burkina Faso is interested in Russian medical equipment, Zekiba Tarnagda, the head of the Burkinabe Reference Laboratory for Influenza and Other Respiratory Pathogens, said in an interview with Sputnik Africa during his participation in the 3D International Exercise for Mobile Laboratories, held in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod.
"We left the French. It's a divorce. So, we are now going to marry the Russians," Zekiba Tarnagda said.
The researcher emphasized that his country wants to strengthen their new collaboration with Russia, believing it to be mutually beneficial and based on human dignity. He contrasted this with the attitude of former colonizers, who, he explained, had treated the Burkinabes differently.
"They colonized us politically, economically, culturally, and socially. We must abandon the legacy of our grandparents and reject their behavior," Tarnagda pointed out, noting the unequal nature of the exchanges with the French, saying they were arrogant and treated the Burkinabes like slaves.
Portable labs, which can function in vehicles or tents, are of particular interest to Burkina Faso, Zekiba Tarnagda stated.
"The advantage here is that we can search for the pathogen at its source. We don't need to transport samples across Burkina Faso to a laboratory in Ouagadougou," he noted.
To solidify the collaboration with Moscow, Burkina Faso plans to send students to Russia to learn medicine. Tarnagda even advocated for the creation of joint institutes or universities to train "the specialists of tomorrow."