G20 Summit 2023: World leaders pledge to implement one health approach

The G20 Summit 2023, hosted by India, comes to an end on Sunday. 

The biggest highlight was that the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration was adopted and the members of the G20 arrived at a “100% consensus” on the opening day of the Summit on Saturday.

While Prime Minister Modi described the development as “historic and pathbreaking”, there were lingering disagreements regarding the Ukraine conflict and climate change action.

On the health front, after facing the burn of the disastrous COVID-19 pandemic, the declaration emphasises future pandemic preparedness and the improvement of essential health services and systems.

The global leaders committed to strengthening the global health architecture, with the World Health Organization (WHO) at its core, and building more resilient, equitable, sustainable, and inclusive health systems to achieve Universal Health Coverage, implement One Health approach, enhance pandemic preparedness and strengthen existing infectious diseases surveillance systems.