China says it has sent a team of 100 military and medical personnel on a peacekeeping mission to South Sudan.

A Chinese website reports that the team left for South Sudan on Tuesday night, while other two teams are set to leave in late November.

A total of three teams consisting of 331 personnel will be sent to Wau in northwestern South Sudan on an eight-month mission aimed at “building and maintaining roads, bridges, airports, water and power facilities as well as destroying weapons and ammunition,” Xinhua reported, citing the statement.

Earlier, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan said about 700 Chinese peacekeepers are expected to join the peace keeping mission this year.

In addition to China, over 60 other countries have contributed military and police personnel to the mission, among them are Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Russia, the United States and Australia.