New Delhi, January 5

India will focus on health emergency prevention, preparedness and response through one health approach and also work on antibiotic resistance during its G20 presidency, Union Health Minister, Mansukh Mandaviya, said on Thursday.

According to him, Covid-19 will not be “the last or only pandemic” and the world needs to join hands to prevent and fight such exigencies.

Focus will also be on strengthening cooperation in the pharma sector for availability and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable medical options such as vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics. Digital health innovations and solutions will be another key area of discussion.

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“India is known as the pharmacy of the world and we will look to promote distributed manufacturing of vaccines, drugs and diagnostics globally so as to manage future health emergencies,” he said.

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The country has already exported drugs and vaccines to nearly 150 countries during the pandemic

As chair of the G20 presidency, the country will look to “continue and consolidate” health-sector priorities while highlighting “critical areas that require strengthening.”

India will also focus on showcasing its digital health solutions – which include universal health coverage and improving healthcare service delivery – so that these can be provided to replicable solutions to low and middle-income countries.

“Our digital health solutions such as Co-WIN, telemedicine, and Covid-19 India platform are perfect examples of the advantages of data-driven insights and use of technology for accessibility, ease of availability and affordability in health service delivery,” Mandaviya said.

Working groups

The Union Health Ministry has also planned four working group meetings and one health ministerial meeting as part of the G20 discussions.

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The ministry plans to host four side events – on medical tourism, digital health, affordable medicine and traditional medicine. The meetings will be held in different locations across the country with the first one being held in Trivandrum later this month.

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