On Sunday, an official revealed that the second meeting of the G20 health working group (HWG) will be held in Goa to leverage the advocacy power of the forum to consolidate all existing initiatives in health emergencies, prevention, preparedness, and response to fill critical gaps in global health architecture.

Mr. Lav Agarwal, assistant secretary of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, revealed in a recent news conference that health priorities were established during the inaugural HWG meeting in Thiruvananthapuram in January 2023.According to him, the group agreed in principle on three recommended goals, including mapping existing actions in health emergencies (prevention, readiness, and response) as well as promoting convergence in global health architecture. He added that the HWG had also recommended deliverables such as regional vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics (VTD), research and development manufacturing networks, and global medical countermeasures coordination platforms.

In addition to the suggested HWG deliverables, Mr. Agarwal stated that the group emphasized the need for a global focus on digital health as an institutional framework to integrate existing digital health projects. 

(Source: https://health.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/policy/g20-hwg-meet-in-goa-to-use-advocacy-power-to-consolidate-existing-initiatives-in-health-emergencies/99536487 )