On 11 November, as part
of Russia’s BRICS Chairmanship, the 10th
Meeting of BRICS Ministers of Health under the theme «Era of COVID-19: Global
BRICS Solidarity for Health Safety» took place via videoconference.
The meeting was
attended by Healthcare Minister of Russia Mikhail Murashko, Russian Sherpa in
BRICS and Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Sergei Ryabkov, Minister of Health
of Brazil Eduardo Pazuello, Minister of Health and Family Welfare of India
Harsh Vardhan, Deputy Minister of the State Healthcare Committee of the
People’s Republic of China Li Bin, Deputy Minister of Health of South Africa
Mathume Joseph Phaahla, WHO Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge, and
Director of WHO’s Global TB Programme Tereza Kasaeva.
«The
pandemic of the new coronavirus infection COVID-19 has shown that modern
society is highly vulnerable to infectious diseases. For the first time in
their history, the BRICS countries have faced such a large-scale and difficult
situation — the spread of the new virus infection without instruments for
pharmaceutical management of the epidemic in existence. BRICS is an optimal
venue for a joint search for effective solutions to global and regional problems.
And today we must not only discuss the main achievements of our countries on
eliminating the new coronavirus pandemic but also formulate our expectations from
further action in this area,» said Minister of Healthcare of Russia Mikhail
Murashko.
The
participants discussed the best national practices on countering the spread of
the new coronavirus infection and prospects for developing joint healthcare
initiatives. The ministers endorsed an overview of the best measures taken by the BRICS
countries to counter the spread of the COVID-19, which will also be presented
at other international venues, such as the UN and the WHO.
The
ministers emphasised the urgency of signing a memorandum of understanding on the
regulation of healthcare products between the regulatory bodies of the BRICS
countries as part of their cooperation in this area.
They also noted the
importance of the agreements that had been reached on promoting the concerted
efforts of the BRICS countries to counter TB and COVID-19, in part, following
three meetings of the BRICS TB Research Network.
The Russian delegation
suggested creating a comprehensive system in BRICS for early warning about the
risks of mass infectious diseases and epidemics in order to coordinate joint
measures on their prevention, prompt response and substantial reduction of
their negative consequences on public health in the BRICS countries.
Following
the meeting, the participants agreed to publish, on the eve of the BRICS Summit,
a declaration of the 10th meeting of the BRICS Health Ministers and
an overview of the best measures taken by the BRICS countries to counter the
spread of COVID-19.
