India's Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday invited all stakeholders to look at his country as a land of opportunities and take advantage of these by partnering with it, adding that this endeavour would lead towards making India and world a healthier place.
"We are working towards augmenting health infrastructure and have initiated multiple schemes to strengthen health systems and improve health service delivery with focus on quality, accessibility and affordability of healthcare services," he said while participating in Health & Healthcare Community Dinner organised by World Economic Forum (WEF) at its meet in Switzerland's Davos.
He reiterated the vision of India of according the topmost priority to healthcare as seva (service). "Be it launch of the world's biggest government funded health assurance scheme, PM Jan Aarogya Yojana covering approximately 500 million people or establishment of 150,000 Health & Wellness Centres, we have put the vision of 'Antyodaya', that is, 'Rise of the last person' into action in healthcare and a key facet of ensuring Universal Health Coverage," he added.
Lauding India contribution in pharmaceutical sector, the Health Minister said: "India has highest number of USFDA manufacturing plants outside US, besides being a world leader in generic medicines.
It has emerged as a hub for R&D activities and is one of the leading destinations for high-end diagnostic services. To create an enabling framework for providing health services to world at large, the government is institutionalising medical tourism through a soon to be launched Heal in India initiative."
Mandaviya is attending multiple sessions in the ongoing World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos. In the series of such sessions, he also participated in the bilateral meeting with German Federal Health Minister, Karl Wilhelm Lauterbach where he lauded the co-operation shown by the German counterparts and was hopeful of continuing and strengthening this co-operation in future as well.