The Ebola virus that has been running rampant throughout West Africa since February has claimed more than 1,200 lives. A myriad of epidemics have long haunted Africa, which has in actuality exposed the severe governance issues of African countries. Now China is committed to creating a community of common destiny and Africa has great expectations for China in providing assistance in terms of treatment and prevention. China can play a significant role with its rich experience of national capacity building and its institutional advantages.

The large-scale outbreak and spreading of Ebola is virtually more of an issue of national governance than of a medical failure. It reflects some long-term fundamental deficiencies of African countries in national governance.

Since the 1960s, when states on the African continent gained independence, some of them have been lacking effective construction of political power and a strong governance system. This time, it is these weak and weather-beaten Western African nations mired in protracted turbulence and warfare that are suffering from the ravaging Ebola.

Some African countries have fallen into a deadlock of anarchy, disorder and even disintegration, constituting the institutional cause for numerous disasters and crisis. After the Cold War, the West began to ramp up the process of economic globalization and political liberalization, gradually eroding the sovereignty and competence of action of African nations.

Continuous conflicts among different clusters, religions and cultures triggered by copying the Western world's multi-party political system have diminished Africans' hope for political progress.

An incredibly large number of Africans are living in a helpless plight in the vast land of tropical forests and wild deserts. Once an epidemic like Ebola breaks out, these poverty-stricken countries are often unable to deal with it.

China has been actively participating in the development and security causes of Africa, striking substantial results. In the international effort to combat Ebola, China should focus more on the long-term goals and fundamental needs of African countries apart from providing humanitarian assistance.

Beijing should treat both symptoms and root causes of the outbreak of the virus and make efforts to promote national capacity building in African countries.

Beijing can introduce its mobilization mechanisms, which have been proved effective and efficient in past disasters, to African countries, in a bid to ramp up their national institutional building and grass-roots political power development. This will also help improve the influence of the Chinese institutional model in Africa.

In addition, we should promote the communication and exchanges between the elite working for think tanks and epidemic prevention and control experts from China and Africa. Expounding discussions on mutual cooperation and explaining respective ideas and concepts should also be listed high on the diplomatic agenda of two sides.

It should be made clear that both China and Africa need political reform, which, nevertheless, should start from and also aim at boosting economic growth and improving people's livelihoods.

The author is director of the Institute of African Studies at Zhejiang Normal University. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn