World needs to come up with long-term strategies to tackle future pandemics: India at UNGA
Dec 08, 2020
New York (US), Dec 08 (ANI): India has taken a holistic approach to health based on four main pillars of healthcare, including preventive healthcare, affordable healthcare, supply-side improvement and mission mode intervention, said Pratik Mathur, Counsellor at United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Delivering India's statement on 'Global Health and Foreign Policy' at the UNGA, Mathur said, "A healthy life is every person's basic right and the onus for this rests on our respective governments to make every possible effort to ensure full protection and enjoyment of this right by everyone." “COVID-19 highlighted systemic weaknesses in health systems and vulnerabilities incapacity to prevent and respond to its threats. We need to address weaknesses & gaps to strengthen global coordination to ensure that world is prepared to curb impacts of future health-related crisis,” he added. He also said that countries need to come up with long-term strategies and roadmaps to deal with future pandemics, adding that equitable access to affordable medicines, diagnostic tools and technologies remain a concern.
