G20 world leaders rally for pandemic fund support and resilience in New Delhi Declaration

The New Delhi G20 Leaders Declaration released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday called for securing new donors and co-investment for the pandemic fund with an enhanced collaboration between Finance and Health Ministries under the Joint Finance and Health Task Force (JFHTF).

The G20 leaders acknowledged the conclusion of the first call for proposals by the pandemic fund and anticipate the second call for proposals by the end of 2023. The Task Force will provide a progress report to Finance and Health Ministers in 2024, the Delhi declaration document said.

The G20 leaders also welcomed the report on best practices from finance-health institutional arrangements during Covid-19. This report aims to enhance joint finance-health sector readiness for future pandemics. Additionally, they appreciated the report on mapping pandemic response financing options and gaps, which was developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and World Bank.

The document highlights the G20 leaders' strong commitment to reinforcing the global health architecture, with the WHO playing a central role. Their objectives encompass the development of more resilient, equitable, sustainable, and inclusive health systems geared toward achieving Universal Health Coverage.

Specific actions outlined include the focus on strengthening primary healthcare, the health workforce, and essential health services within the next 2-3 years. Additionally, the G20 leaders support a One Health-based approach in alignment with the Quadripartite's One Health Joint Plan of Action (2022-2026) and seek to enhance health system resilience, promote climate-resilient, low-carbon health systems, and address the challenge of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) through a One Health approach.

The leaders emphasize the importance of facilitating equitable access to medical countermeasures, especially in Low- and Middle-income Countries (LMICs), LDCs, and SIDS, while also supporting efforts for an ambitious, legally binding WHO convention or agreement on pandemic Preparedness, Prevention, and Response (PPR) by May 2024.

“The G 20 nations represent a powerful collective commitment to equitable human development. While economic security was the keystone of the G-20 when it was formed, ecological sanctity and sustainable development have emerged as high priorities for concerted global action. "Health is pivotal to human development," said, Prof. K Srinath Reddy, Distinguished Professor of Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), a public-private healthcare initiative.

"It is the platform on which the G-20 can launch many collaborative initiatives to protect, promote, and restore health across the life course of people everywhere. Whether health threats are posed by climate change or pandemics, non-communicable diseases or mental health disorders, the whole world is vulnerable,” he said.

The document recognizes the potential role of Traditional and Complementary Medicine in health and advocates for the development of an interim medical counter measures coordination mechanism and improved access to mental health services. Furthermore, it calls for strong international counter-narcotics cooperation to address the global drug problem comprehensively.

“It is essential to share knowledge, use technologies for the common good, and promote partnerships that can advance human health in all of its dimensions through action on all of its determinants. This volume is intended to assist the policymakers of G-20 nations in identifying priority domains for their attention and action while profiling productive pathways for addressing major challenges that confront global health,” said Reddy.

During India's 18th G20 Summit presidency, the New Delhi G20 Leaders Declaration achieved unanimous approval on Saturday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the first day of the G20 Summit, unveiled this declaration, which centers on critical topics such as the Ukraine conflict, geopolitical tensions, sustainable growth, and the pursuit of an inclusive global community that includes health as one of the core areas.