Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday called upon the G20 countries to be ready to prevent, prepare, and respond to the next health emergency.
Modi made the remark during the G20 Health Ministers’ Meeting underway in Gandhinagar of western Indian state of Gujarat, saying that Covid-19 had recalled the importance of international cooperation in dealing with global health emergencies, and that health should be at the center of global decisions, his office said in a statement.
“Calling resilience one of the biggest lessons during the pandemic, the Prime Minister said global health systems should be resilient. We must be ready to prevent, prepare, and respond to the next health emergency,” the statement said.
Modi pointed out that today’s interconnected world demands more cooperation and organised work to prevent global health emergencies. “As we saw during the pandemic, health issues in one part of the world can affect all other parts of the world in a very short time,” he said.
World Health Organization’s Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus who was also present at the meeting reminded that COVID-19 is still a global health threat though it is no longer a health emergency for the world.
“Although COVID-19 is no longer a global health emergency, it remains a global health threat. WHO has recently classified a new variant with a large number of mutations. BA.2.86 variant is under monitoring at present, highlighting once again the need for all countries to maintain surveillance,” he said.
He appealed for commitment to negotiate “a comprehensive Pandemic Accord that encompasses all the essence of pandemic so that we never repeat the same mistakes again.” On his part, Indian Minister of Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya announced the finalization of the negotiations, and the adoption of the Health Minister’s Meeting Outcome Document.
He said that there was consensus on all paragraphs barring one geopolitical paragraph on Ukraine. He also thanked participants for their cooperation during the negotiations. He said that he is looking forward to the implementation of decisions in the coming future in the face of emerging health challenges.
The G20 Health Ministers’ Meeting being held between 18th-19th August focus on three health priorities set under India’s G20 Presidency. Health emergencies prevention preparedness and response; strengthening cooperation in pharmaceutical sector with focus on access and availability to safe, effective, quality and affordable medical countermeasures and digital health innovations and solutions to aid universal health coverage and improve healthcare service delivery, are the three focus areas.
Around 70 representatives and leaders in the health sector including G20 health ministers are participating in the event
Source: Kuwait News Agency