India to supply Covid-19 vaccines to 40 more countries: S Jaishankar

India will add 40 countries to the list of 70 nations where it is exporting Covid-19 vaccines, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar said.

“India has lived up to its talk on a collaborative future by exporting vaccines to more than 70 countries and will be adding over 40 countries to this list soon,” he said.

Speaking at the 5th edition of the Asia Economic Dialogue 2021 jointly hosted by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Pune International Centre (PIC), Dr Jaishankar elaborated on how India handled the Covid-19 pandemic.

“By early lockdown, social distancing and enforcing strict discipline, we have been able to withstand the disastrous consequences of Covid-19,” he said.

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“In the last one year, India has faced three major challenges - Covid-19, economic inequalities and border problems...the government had chalked out path-breaking measures to address all three challenges,” he said.

Dr Jaishankar and Australia’s Foreign Minister, Senator Marise Payne participated in a panel discussion titled ‘Resilient Global Growth in a post-pandemic world’.

The session began with a pre-recorded message from the Minister of External Affairs of Japan, Motegi Toshimitsu.

Dr Raghunath Mashelkar, President, PIC and eminent scientist and Ambassador Gautam Bambawale, convener AED 2021 made the opening remarks and welcomed the delegates.

The theme of this year’s AED is ‘Post Covid-19 Global Trade and Finance Dynamics’.

Dr Jaishankar emphasised that ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ and collaboration with trusted partners such as Australia and Japan will co-exist and build synergies in rebuilding the global economy. “Trade between nations must be on a level-playing field,” he said.

Payne also said her country has allocated 500 million dollars to support vaccination programmes in various south East Asian countries. She said the two challenges before her government have been openness in free trade, access to multilateral trade agenda and boosting the supply chain infrastructure. We want to use modern technology including artificial intelligence and quantum mechanics so that we ensure that our economy is not affected by any such calamity in future”. While aiming to achieve self-reliance, we also have to look for `trustworthy partnerships’ at the international level, she added.

Dr Mashelkar said the world is now in a `reset mode’ after the pandemic and paid rich tributes to the city of Pune for emerging as the vaccine capital of the world in a short time.

Pune International Centre had organised the first event last year successfully and that he is confident that Pune will emerge as the `Davos of the East’ soon, he added.