Malaysia offered 30 medical places

Star: HAVANA: After spending the whole morning visiting two leading health institutions here, an impressed Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced that Cuba has offered 30 places at a free medical school funded by the government.
However, the Prime Minister said the relevant authorities would have to evaluate the Latin American School of Medicine (Elam) before Malaysia could accept the offer.
“I will ask the Health and Higher Education Ministries to ascertain if we can recognise the medical degrees offered,” he told Malaysian journalists here to cover the 14th Non-Aligned Movement Summit.
Abdullah, who spent more than an hour at Elam, said the Cuban effort to set up a free medical school for poor foreigners was remarkable, adding that this was an effective way of eradicating poverty.
“I see this as a model project which can be implemented in developing countries,” he added.
The students in Elam do not have to pay for anything, including food and lodging.
The Prime Minister, who also visited the Pander Ferrer Opthalmomogical Hospital, was full of praise for the Cuban healthcare delivery system, which was free for its citizens.
He said the average lifespan of Cubans was 77, which showed that the country’s healthcare delivery was good, while in Malaysia it was 72 years.