Reform WHO for a better world: Modi

Modi calls for equitable access to medicines

Calling attention to the fact that India fully vaccinated almost 90 per cent of its adult population and more than 50 million of its children, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday evening said that the World Health Organisation (WHO) “must be reformed and strengthened to build a more resilient global health security architecture.”

During his address at the second global virtual summit on Covid-19 hosted by the United States President Joe Biden, Prime Minister also pitched for making the World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules, particularly the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), more flexible.

The PM also called for “streamlining WHO’s approval process for vaccines and therapeutics to keep supply chains stable and predictable.”

In his address, Modi also emphasised on “building a resilient global supply chain and enabling equitable access to vaccines and medicines.”

He said, “As a responsible member of the global community, India is ready to play a key role in these efforts.”

The Prime Minister said, “The Covid pandemic continues to disrupt lives, supply chains and tests the resilience of open societies. In India, we adopted a people-centric strategy against the pandemic... Our vaccination programme is the largest in the world… India manufactures four WHO approved vaccines and has the capacity to produce five billion doses this year.”

“We supplied over 200 million doses to 98 countries, bilaterally and through COVAX. India has developed low-cost Covid mitigation technologies for testing, treating and data management. We have offered these capabilities to other countries,” he said.

The Prime Minister said there was a need for building a resilient global supply chain and enabling equitable access to vaccines and medicines.