Remarks of President of the Republic of Indonesia During Second Session of G20 Summit on Health Issues, at The Apurva Kempinski Hotel, Badung Regency, Bali Province, November 15, 2022

Your Excellencies, I declare the second session of G20 Summit open. I hope you enjoy the meals we served you. Now, let us have a discussion about health issues.

Let me start with introductory remarks.

G20 leaders,

The world is recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we must not let our guard down. Another global health emergency can occur at any time. At that time, the world must be more prepared. Our readiness will save lives and economy. G20 must take concrete and immediate measures.

First, we must strengthen global health architecture. We need the World Health Organization to be stronger and more competitive. Solidarity and justice must be the spirit of global health architecture. The G20 has managed to establish a pandemic fund. The move must be followed by additional funding contributions to function optimally.

I invite all stakeholders to contribute. Indonesia has committed $50 million. The G20 must take part in overseeing the process of forming a pandemic treaty. This is critical to strengthen the readiness at the national, regional, and global levels.

Second, developing countries must be empowered as part of the solution. The health capacity gap cannot be tolerated. Developing countries need empowering partnerships. Developing countries must become part of the global health supply chain, including manufacturing and research centers. It can only happen with increased investment in the health industry, strengthening research cooperation and technology transfer, as well as expanding access to production raw materials for developing countries.

In addition, we also need to expand the TRIPS waiver to all health solutions, including diagnostics and therapeutics. The WHO must also realize its commitment regarding hubs and spokes as part of the world health solution.

Your Excellencies, the world must not repeat the same mistakes just like the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a valuable lesson for preparing the world for a global health emergency. ‘Never again’ should be our mantra. I look forward to your views and contributions to strengthening the world’s health architecture.

That concludes my remarks. Thank you.

Your Excellencies, we will then continue with closed discussion. With all due respect, the media crew could please leave the meeting room. Thank you. (RIF/LW)