HYDERABAD: Being organised under India’s presidency, the third G20 Health Working Group (HWG) meeting scheduled in Hyderabad from June 4 to 6, will focus on health emergency prevention, preparedness, and response with a focus on antimicrobial resistance and one health framework.
The meeting will also aim to strengthen cooperation in the pharmaceutical sector with a focus on access and availability of safe, effective, quality, and affordable medical countermeasures (vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics). Additionally, digital health innovations and solutions to aid universal health coverage and improve healthcare service delivery will be discussed.
The third meeting will consist of a main event and a side event, with a focus on collaboration on research and development in Medical Counter Measures (MCMs). As part of this meeting, two co-branded events, including the Global Vaccine Research Collaborative and the Joint Finance and Health Task Force meeting for sharing learnings from the pandemic, will be organised.
The delegates will be taken to Genome Valley, the home to renowned global life sciences companies, to showcase India’s expertise in life sciences, research and pharmaceutical manufacturing sectors. They will also be introduced to the culture and cuisine of Hyderabad.
Addressing the media on Saturday, Lav Agarwal, Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, mentioned that 180 members, 10 invited countries, and 22 international organisations will be participating in the third meeting.
The HWG has proposed several deliverables, including mapping ongoing initiatives in health emergencies prevention, preparedness, and response. Additionally, the launch of a climate change and health hub to address the impact of climate change on health will be discussed.
Agarwal also stated that the creation of regional networks for the manufacturing of vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics (VTD), as well as the establishment of a global medical countermeasures coordination platform, will be topics of discussion. The launch of a global initiative on digital health, which aims to bring together existing digital health initiatives, is also among the proposed deliverables.