Because Both Rich And Poor Countries Deserve Good Health …

Source– The post is based on the article “Because Both Rich And Poor Countries Deserve Good Health …” published in The Times of India on 17th January 2023.

Syllabus: GS2- Issues related to development and management of health

Relevance– India vision of global health cooperation

News– The article explains the Indian priorities for global health architecture at G20.

India’s vision of a healthier globe emanates from the philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam that translates into One Earth, One Family, One Future.

What are the priorities of India for Global Health Architecture at G20?

1.Strengthen national capacities:

The first is strengthening national capacities to prevent, prepare for and respond to major outbreaks.

The agenda will include a One Health approach to antimicrobial resistance.

It advocates for partnering with multiple organisations like WHO, World Bank, G7, Access to Covid-19 Tools Accelerator. This effort will attempt to synergise existing strengths and identify bottlenecks in the system.

It calls for pandemic countermeasures that are affordable, equitable and universal in access.

G20 India Health Track aims to facilitate seamless integration towards a global health emergency architecture.

2. Strengthen pharma cooperation:

Indian generics are valued across the world. In FY 2022, pharma products worth $24. 47 billion were supplied to 200 countries.

India continues to provide affordable HIV drugs and anti-TB generics to several LMICs. India’s role in addressing life-saving vaccine inequity has been appreciated worldwide.

It provided critical doses to more than 100 countries during the most difficult phase of Covid through the ‘Vaccine Maitri’ initiative.

The government has introduced production-linked incentive schemes for strengthening the pharma sector. It has planned Bulk Drug Parks and Medical Device Parks.

India’s G20 presidency proposes to address the gaps in the availability, accessibility and affordability of medical countermeasures.

It shall continue to prioritise global networks for R&D and manufacturing for medical countermeasures.

3. Digital solutions

The global Covid experience has amply demonstrated how digital technologies can help in remote data capture, medical diagnosis and virtual care.

Millions of citizens used the CoWin app to access vaccines. Tele-consultation proved to be life-saving during the pandemic.

GoI’s free telemedicine service, eSanjeevani, has recently crossed a remarkable milestone of 90 million tele-consultations.

India is marching towards universal health coverage through initiatives such as Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY backed by technology to make it portable, scalable and paperless across states.

CoWin has been shared with several countries as a digital public health good.

The collective efforts of G20 members will help create an ecosystem that provides open access to several LMICs for more equitable healthcare.

India plans to draw a framework for the Global Initiative on Digital Health and harness the potential of artificial intelligence in building more resilient infrastructure.