FM shares India’s Covid response with G20

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday shared India’s preparedness and response to Covid-19 at the G20 High-Level Independent Panel (HLIP) on financing the global commons for pandemic preparedness and response.Sitharaman virtually interacted with the co-chairs of the G20 HLIP – Singapore’s senior minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, former United States treasury secretary Lawrence H. Summers and World Trade Organization director general Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala – and highlighted the slew of measures undertaken by the government in strengthening the health system and supporting the Indian economy in the fight against the pandemic.Sitharaman also discussed the panel’s work, which will be presented during the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting this month, the finance ministry said in a statement.The G20 had established the HLIP in January to identify solutions for preparedness and response to the pandemic, in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis which highlighted the need for a broad-based global effort to improve prevention, surveillance, preparedness and response. The panel also underlines the need for an appropriate funding system, required for managing future health threats.The panel has been tasked with identifying gaps in the financing system and proposing actionable solutions to bridge these gaps on a systematic and sustainable basis. It will optimally leverage resources from the public, private and philanthropic sectors as well as international financial institutions.India, on its part, has launched a nationwide vaccination plan for providing free vaccination against Covid-19 to millions while ensuring vaccine supply consistency to states across the country.Last week, Sitharaman announced a ₹6.28 lakh crore stimulus package to boost sectors ravaged by the pandemic through eight measures including ₹1.5 lakh crore additional credit for small and medium businesses, and export insurance cover of ₹1.22 lakh crore.

from Economic Times https://ift.tt/3wjviFh