India attends SAARC health ministers conference hosted by Pakistan

India on Thursday participated in a video conference of SAARC health ministers hosted by Pakistan to promote greater regional cooperation to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said India was represented at the conference by Director General of Health Services who was assisted by experts from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

"The virtual meeting was an occasion for India to reaffirm its strong commitment towards greater sharing of knowledge, expertise and best practices in the joint fight against COVID-19 for the larger regional good," the MEA said.

Most SAARC countries were represented at the official level.

"This event followed India's earlier initiative of hosting a video conference of senior health professionals on March 26 which had proved to be a productive and outcome-oriented exercise to promote greater regional cooperation against COVID-19," the MEA said in a statement.

It said India made a detailed presentation at the conference on how it is responding to the situation.

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is a regional grouping comprising Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

All the SAARC member nations are reeling under adverse social and economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

At the video conference, the Indian side briefed other countries about its efforts to ramp up production of medicines and essential materials besides its research on drugs and vaccines to confront the pandemic.

"At the meeting, India also highlighted the successful use and promising future of new and innovative technology-based solutions such as the mobile app 'Aarogya Setu' to maximize community outreach and intervention," the MEA said