Many Of India's Initiatives Are Targeted At Improving Health At The Last Mile: PM Modi

On Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that the COVID-19 epidemic showed several vulnerabilities in the global health architecture and that strengthening resilience in global systems requires a collaborative effort. Modi said in a video message to the 76th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, that the pandemic highlighted the need to improve global health equity, and that India demonstrated its commitment to international cooperation by shipping nearly 300 million vaccine doses to more than 100 countries.

"Many of these countries were from the Global South. I am sure that supporting equal access to resources will be a top priority for the WHO in the coming years," he said.

According to Modi, India has worked in recent years to improve the availability, accessibility, and affordability of healthcare. He said, "An approach that works with the scale of India's diversity, can also be a framework for others. We are keen on supporting the WHO for similar efforts in low- and middle-income countries."

Whether it's the world's largest health insurance scheme, Ayushman Bharat, or the vast expansion of health facilities, or the mission to bring sanitation and drinking water to millions of people, many of India's initiatives, the Prime Minister noted, are targeted at improving health at the last mile. According to traditional Indian thinking, the absence of illness is not synonymous with good health, he said, adding that traditional systems such as yoga, ayurveda, and meditation address physical, mental, and social elements of health. He said, "I am glad that WHO's first Global Centre for Traditional Medicine is being established in India. I am also happy that the world is recognising the importance of millets through the International Year of Millets." Modi noted that India's ancient scriptures teach to see the world as one family.

"During our G20 Presidency this year, we are working with the theme of 'One Earth, One Family, One Future'. Our vision for good health is 'One Earth One Health'. We can be healthy only when our whole ecosystem is healthy. So, our vision is not restricted to just humans. It extends to the entire ecosystem, including animals, plants and the environment," he said.