President Jokowi Invites G20 to Increase Equality in Global Health Capacity

President Jokowi chairs the second session of G20 Summit, Tuesday (11/15), at the Apurva Kempinski Hotel, Bali province. (Source: Screenshot)

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo Tuesday (11/15) chaired the second session of G20 Summit on global health issues at the Apurva Kempinski Hotel, Bali province.

In his remarks, the President called on G20 member states to remain vigilant despite gradual recovery of the pandemic.

“Another global health emergency can occur anytime. At that time, the world must be more prepared. Our readiness will save lives and economy. G20 must take concrete and immediate measures,” the President said.

On that occasion, the Head of State also underscored several concrete measures that can be taken to increase global health capacity, including strengthening global health architecture and increasing equality of health capacity.

“We must strengthen global health architecture. We need the World Health and Organization to be stronger and more competitive. Solidarity and justice must be the spirit of global health architecture,” he said.

The President went on to say that a pandemic fund initiated by the G20 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,” he said.

In addition, the President also underlined the importance of involving developing countries in increasing world health capacity.

“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,” he stated, while highlighting the importance of increasing investment in the health industry.

“We also need to strengthen cooperation in research and technology transfer and expand access to production raw materials for developing countries,” he added.

The President also encouraged the expansion of the TRIPS waiver to all health solutions, including diagnostics and therapeutics.

The President also urged the WHO to realize its commitment regarding hubs and spokes as part of the world health solution.

“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,” he remarked. (TGH/UN) (RIF/LW)