Speaking at the Second G20 Health Ministerial Meeting, in Bali, Indonesia, the minister acknowledged his Indonesian counterpart’s call for prioritizing manufacturing and research hubs to ensure that the world is prepared to counter any future medical challenges.
He highlighted the need to “consolidate efforts taken by the G20 towards managing the COVID19 pandemic by creating a permanent medical countermeasure platform and ensuring availability of safe, quality and affordable diagnostic vaccines and therapeutics".
Expressing his appreciation for Indonesia, Italy, Saudi Arabia and past presidencies of the G20, Mandaviya outlined India’s plan to prioritize “health emergency prevention, preparedness and response; strengthening cooperation in the pharmaceutical sector with focus on availability and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable medical counter-measures; and digital health innovation and solution to aid universal health coverage and improve healthcare service delivery" for the health working groups during the upcoming Indian presidency.
He also proposed site events such as digital health workshop on collaborative research to expand access to medical counter-measures, medical value travel and holistic healthcare through evidence based traditional medicines to support, supplement and enrich G20 discussions.
