Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given a ten-point call to action at the G-7 Summit for development of inclusive food systems and holistic healthcare inspired by needs of developing countries and “not driven by consumerism’‘.
In his remarks at the G-7 Summit in Hiroshima on Saturday, Modi pitched for technology transfer and affordable finance for developing countries to address the challenge of climate change.
Quad meet
On the sidelines of the G-7 Summit, the PM attended the Quad meeting, with US President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, and Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and announced India’s wish to host the Quad Summit in 2024.
He also had a series of bilateral meetings with leaders including Japanese PM Fumio Kishida, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (first in-person meeting since Russia’s invasion last February), French President Emmanuel Macron, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
“It is important for us to work together for the betterment of our planet and to address the challenges we face relating to sectors such as healthcare, wellness food security and more,” Modi tweeted following his speech at the session on ‘Working Together to Address Multiple Crisis’.
Focus on food systems
The ten-point call to action, proposed by Modi, includes development of inclusive food systems that protect the most vulnerable, including marginal farmers, adoption of millets for nutritional and environmental benefits, stoppage of food wastage to strengthen food security, depoliticisation of global fertilizer supply chains and developing alternative models, development of resilient healthcare systems, pursual of traditional medicine systems, promotion of digital health for global universal health coverage and ensuring mobility of healthcare professionals.
“There is a need to focus on the holistic use of natural resources and the development model inspired by consumerism has to be changed,” he said.
The PM also pitched for technology transfer and affordable finance for developing countries to address the challenge of climate change, at another working session of the G-7 Summit.
“If we do not make technology transfer and affordable financing available to countries that are in need, then all our discussions (on Climate Action) will be mere words. On the ground, there will be no change,” he cautioned.
Modi is in Hiroshima to participate in the two-day G-7 Summit on the invitation of Kishida. The G-7 is an informal grouping of seven of the world’s advanced economies, including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the US, as well as the European Union.