India is hosting the Quad Workshop on Pandemic Preparedness for the Indo-Pacific Region from March 17-19, 2025
Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Anupriya Singh Patel inaugurated the QUAD Workshop on Pandemic Preparedness for Indo-Pacific Region, in New Delhi.
The purpose of the three-day workshop, jointly organised by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Ministry of External Affairs, is to strengthen global health emergency frameworks, enhance preparedness and resilience to health threats, and ensure coordinated responses to evolving pandemics as well as the implementation of One Health approach, addressing human, animal, and environmental health through a multisectoral lens.
Addressing the gathering, Patel said, "The rise of emerging and re-emerging health threats in recent times underscores the critical necessity of strengthened preparedness, enhanced surveillance, and well-coordinated international response mechanisms to safeguard global health security.”
Highlighting India’s commitment to strengthening global pandemic preparedness and response efforts, Patel informed, "India has contributed $10 million towards the establishment of the Pandemic Fund which was specially conceptualised for fighting pandemics.”
“India has further pledged an additional $12 million to support its sustained functioning,” she added.
Patel stated that India has led Digital Health initiatives, leveraging technology to improve health access, and outcomes, and create sustainable, data-driven systems. These efforts are central to building a health system capable of addressing current and future health and climate challenges. She added that towards the vision of creating and stabilising a resilient and pandemic-ready healthcare system, India has established a comprehensive health emergency coordination framework, strategically focussed on preparedness, response, and resilience-building through setting up several key initiatives within the healthcare system such as Integrated Disease Surveillance Program (IDSP), National One Health Program for Prevention and Control of Zoonosis and National Vector Borne Disease Control and Prevention (NVBDCP), among others.
The Union Minister highlighted that India’s harnessing of digital technology in healthcare through initiatives like the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) and tools like the CoWIN platform, eSanjeevani, National Telemedicine Service, Tele-MANAS to manage mental health diseases, and the Ni-Kshay portal for tracking monitoring and management of Tuberculosis patients.
“Our robust digital disease surveillance system offers a valuable model for other countries seeking to strengthen their public health infrastructure”, she added.
Patel stated that India, as a lighthouse country in digital health technologies, has been at the forefront of deliberations across various international forums. “India is keen to share our Digital Public Infrastructures (DPIs) with the global community, especially with our friends in the Global South to enable modern healthcare approaches. We are also willing to offer courses and capacity-building training in partnership with our MEA in identified areas of interest in the health sector,” she further stated.
Prof Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, highlighted the efforts being taken to integrate health services in India. He stated that this workshop presents a unique approach to addressing health challenges collaboratively with like-minded partner countries.
He emphasised the need to strengthen regional health networks and prepare for zoonotic diseases, especially for countries with a significant livestock sector. He stressed on sharing of technologies for better surveillance, disease modelling and improving public health systems for better preparedness. He also highlighted the need for more engagement among students and the scientific community to foster innovation.
Smt. Punya Salila Srivastava, Union Health Secretary stated that “this workshop is a valuable opportunity to exchange knowledge, best practices and most importantly strengthen health systems in the Indo-Pacific region by putting people at the centre of preparedness and equipping them to respond effectively to future healthcare crisis.”
She highlighted, “By leveraging India’s vast vaccine production capacity, the US’ cutting-edge research, Japan’s technological expertise, and Australia’s strong regional engagement, the Quad has emerged as a force for health security in the Indo-Pacific and beyond.”
The Union Health Secretary noted that pandemics necessitate prompt, urgent and sustained stewardship, global solidarity, and multilateral cooperation. Aligning with this, she advocated for strengthening pandemic preparedness capacity at all levels and extended India’s steadfast support to any such initiative.
PIB
