(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 9. India's G20
leadership could be a defining moment in addressing critical issues
for patients worldwide by establishing regional networks for
R&D and manufacturing vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics
to improve preparedness for future health emergencies, trend reports.
The Covid-19 pandemic has sparked focussed vaccine development
efforts worldwide, whereby many vaccines based on novel
technologies have been developed and deployed globally. India has
established itself as a leading global vaccine manufacturer and is
sufficiently well-placed in terms of infrastructural capacities.
India's accelerated response to Covid has been one of the landmark
achievements of our nation.
India's effective battle against Covid can be attributed to
several key factors. These include proactive government support, a
robust foundation of biomanufacturing capabilities within the
private sector, and longstanding strategic investments in the
biotech ecosystem. However, the pandemic has also revealed the need
to strengthen health systems and supply chains for equitable access
to medical countermeasures worldwide.
Current healthcare challenges are complex and require a
concerted global response and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision
of 'Healing, Harmony and Hope' provides an opportunity to promote a
more people-centric form of globalisation that, in turn,
prioritises universal healthcare. The nation's leadership at the
G20 could be a defining moment in addressing critical issues for
patients worldwide by establishing regional networks for research
and development and manufacturing vaccines, therapeutics, and
diagnostics to improve preparedness for future health
emergencies.
Covid tools
The challenging Covid years witnessed a fatal economic downturn
that had a more significant impact on low-income and emerging
economies. Ad-hoc coordination mechanisms, such as the access to
Covid tools, faced financing, access and trade challenges which
constrained the ability to operate at the speed and scale required.
In addition, more meaningful engagement of key actors, particularly
low-income countries (LICs) and lower-middle-income countries
(LMICs), was needed.
To address these issues, countries collaborating on R&D and
manufacturing can ensure the accessibility and affordability of
medical countermeasures for all, regardless of location or income
level. These networks would bring together countries in a specific
region to share resources, expertise and infrastructure,
accelerating the development and manufacturing of medical
countermeasures. By addressing the issue of vaccine inequity,
regional networks can ensure fair distribution of vaccines, as
highlighted during the pandemic.
The nation provides a favorable ecosystem for biotech and
healthcare businesses, boasting a qualified talent pool, top-notch
infrastructure, and business-friendly policies. The Department of
Biotechnology (DBT) and Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance
Council (BIRAC) under Government of India have worked significantly
to strengthen healthcare infrastructure, improve disease
surveillance, increase investment in R&D, increase public
awareness, develop a robust supply chain, and last but not least
foster collaborations with international organisations such as the
World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) to share information and expertise on pandemic
preparedness and response.
This includes DBT-BIRAC's 'Mission COVID Suraksha - The Indian
COVID-19 Vaccine Development Mission' that was launched under the
Atmanirbhar Bharat 3.0 package, for the development of a safe,
efficacious, and affordable vaccine for Covid. Four Covid vaccines
supported under Mission COVID Suraksha received Emergency Use
Authorisation that comprises world's first and India's indigenously
developed DNA vaccine, ZyCoV-D.
Based on genomics and data analytics capacity, the department
during Covid coordinated Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium
(INSACOG) to sequence over two lakh SARS-CoV-2 genomes for
strengthening Covid surveillance capabilities in the country.
Regional networks
The success of DBT's Ind-Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness
Innovations (CEPI) Mission, exemplifies the potential of regional
networks in tackling global health challenges. Efforts like the
Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), an
autonomous institute of DBT, recognised by CEPI as a global network
of laboratories for centralised assessment of Covid vaccines, have
significantly contributed to vaccine development. DBT's The
Partnerships for Accelerating Clinical Trials training programme
for strengthening clinical trial capacities, was conducted under
the aegis of Ind-CEPI, for 2000+ participants from 14 neighbouring
countries.
The pandemic has underscored the importance of a decentralised
model for manufacturing diagnostics, combining regional and global
manufacturing to ensure equitable and sustainable access worldwide.
With 78 per cent of the world's top 50 pharmaceutical companies
located in G20 countries, collaborative and cooperative approaches
among G20 nations can complement the role of the World Health
Assembly in expanding access to diagnostics and achieving universal
health coverage.
A global platform that ensures inclusivity, efficiency, agility,
accountability, speed and affordability, for coordinating medical
countermeasures could also be a game-changer in global health
preparedness by coordinating the development, manufacturing and
distribution of medical countermeasures. The platform could bring
together stakeholders from governments, academia and private sector
to coordinate development, manufacturing, and distribution of
medical countermeasures to ensure that all countries have access to
life-saving treatments and vaccines.
By prioritising collaboration and coordination among
stakeholders from different sectors, the platform could provide
adequate funding for R&D and manufacturing, develop medical
countermeasures for diseases with pandemic potential, and ensure
sufficient stockpiles for rapid deployment during a crisis. In
addition, such a platform could also help optimise for value for
money as a crucial enabler of accessibility, particularly in LICs
and LMICs and address the issue of vaccine nationalism, which has
become a significant challenge during the pandemic.
The well-equipped DBT Autonomous Institutes and the robust
start-up ecosystem fostered by BIRAC have created a conducive
environment for low-cost indigenous vaccine development in the
country. Other notable achievements in vaccine development by
DBT-BIRAC include the low-cost indigenously developed Rotavirus
vaccine (Rotavac) and more recently India's first indigenously
developed quadrivalent Human Papilloma Virus (qHPV) vaccine against
cervical cancer.
It is for the first time with India's G20 leadership in 2023
that the G20 troika will comprise exclusively members from LMICs
together with Indonesia and Brazil. By prioritising global health
preparedness and strengthening regional and global networks, we can
ensure a more resilient and equitable world for all beyond the G20
countries.
The writer is Secretary at Department of Biotechnology in the
Ministry of Science & Technology, and is Professor (on deputation)
from IISER Pune. Views expressed are personal.