WORLD NEWS | During Covid, India has really established itself as world’s ‘pharmacy’: EAM Jaishankar

bogota [Colombia]April 27 (ANI): During the COVID pandemic, India has truly established itself as the world’s pharmacy by supplying vaccines to nearly 100 countries and at least 150 countries, including some from the developed world. Achieve this goal and increase the supply of the drug, Foreign Minister S Jaishankar said in Colombia on Thursday.

Looking back on the struggle during the COVID-19 epidemic, he said that this has made everyone pay more attention to health.

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“The truth is that COVID has made us all more health conscious, but also aware of the fragility of our supply chains. Cost is also a relevant factor if we’re looking at more sourcing, regional production, and competitive pricing. I suggest we The Colombian friend Indian industry is your natural partner,” Jaishankar said while speaking at the India-Colombia Business Forum.

India also has traditional medicine and health practices that can have strong commercial influence. certainly. Therefore, these are areas worth exploring, he further said.

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Referring to the trade between India and Colombia, Jaishankar said that the two countries will naturally seek to expand the volume of trade, the decision before us is when, where and how much to invest, and the pharmaceutical industry in particular has to seize this challenge .

“Our effort is naturally to assess the relative ease of doing business between countries in the region. We look at market access issues, regulatory complexities and non-tariff barriers. The predictability of the business environment is also an important factor. To be honest, Even the ease of obtaining a business visa is a consideration. Not least, we assess how much the partner government in question has invested in developing its relationship with India,” EAM said in his speech.

From a Colombian perspective, it is necessary to be familiar with areas where India has made particular progress in recent years, he added.

“I hope our Colombian friends also take note that India is currently doing about $17 billion in trade with Brazil and about $8.5 billion with Mexico. If nothing else, I hope this is a motivating factor. With Indian businesses with a stronger desire to deal, invest, collaborate and execute projects, and business events like this one, and visits like mine and a business mission, all contribute to the decision,” he said.

Currently, the foreign minister is visiting four countries in Latin America. He went to Guyana and Panama before visiting Colombia.

EAM’s visits to these four countries; his bilateral contacts and interactions with important regional groups (CARICOM and SICA) added momentum to India-Latin America engagement.

Jaishankar’s visit to Colombia marks India’s first foreign ministerial visit to the Latin American country.

Earlier today, Foreign Minister Jaishankar met with Colombian Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva Duran on Thursday. The two leaders discussed several bilateral issues and signed a cultural exchange plan for 2023-26.

The two leaders also discussed reformed multilateralism and exchanged views on expanding bilateral cooperation in health, agriculture and digital fields. Global issues, including the Indo-Pacific, also came up in the discussion.

“Met with Colombian Foreign Minister @AlvaroLeyva this morning. Exchanged views on expanding our bilateral cooperation, especially in the areas of health, agriculture and digital. Suggested greater communication and increased cooperation, especially in capacity building. Also touched upon global issues , including Indo-Pacific. Addressed reformed multilateralism. Signed cultural exchange plan 2023-26,” Jaishankar tweeted.

Jaishankar also met Honorio Henriquez, Second Vice-President of the Colombian Senate and had a dialogue on health cooperation, energy and technology. (Arnie)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)