Representative Image
During its G20 leadership, India successfully garnered agreement on two major focal points within the health agenda: establishing a collaborative network for researching, manufacturing, and distributing vaccines, treatments, and medical tests, as well as creating a platform for exchanging digital healthcare resources.
While the issue of sharing intellectual property rights for future pandemics remained a contentious matter, there was consensus among officials to establish a temporary coordination platform for medical countermeasures.
This platform will focus on creating an equitable research and development as well as manufacturing network for vaccines, drugs, and diagnostics, especially in the global South, officials said.
Additional Secretary, Health, Lav Agarwal said: “Most of the research and development [R&D] and manufacturing is currently restricted to a few countries. Take for example diagnostics — we found that 60% to70% R&D comes from just three to five countries. There is a need to diversify it. The platform will also support logistics and distribution to ensure equitable access. This, however, is an interim measure.”
Agarwal cited the example of Covid-19 pandemic, which saw resource-sharing through global platforms such as Covax but also vaccine inequity between the rich and the poor nations.
He said, “Talks are under way to create a treaty on pandemic that will resolve these issues. This is likely to be done by next May, in time for the next World Health Assembly. From experience, we know it takes at least two to three years for countries to ratify these treaties and create legal frameworks.”
But, he added, future pandemics are “unlikely to wait for this to happen”, and thereby this interim platform.
Officials report that under New Delhi’s G20 leadership, there has been an achievement of agreement to establish a worldwide effort in the realm of digital health, spearheaded by the World Health Organization (WHO). This initiative aims to facilitate the sharing of digital health platforms for the common benefit. The launch of this platform is scheduled for August 19, coinciding with the ongoing gathering of health ministers in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The portal will include features such as an investment tracker, an “ask tracker” to compile a database of various countries’ digital requirements, and a library containing information about accessible platforms.
