THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
Kerala is well on track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), especially those related to health, by the 2030 deadline by consolidating on the achievements and focussing on a long-term agenda, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today said.
Inaugurating the international webinar series on “Kerala Health: Making the SDG a Reality”, organised by the State Government, he said a resilient and responsive healthcare system is one of the central pillars of Kerala’s development agenda. The state’s development paradigm focused on health and education as the driving force that would ensure sustainable, equitable and all-round development.
“Kerala leads the country in its progress towards achieving these goals, with NITI Aayog ranking the state as the best performer with a score of 70. This achievement is even more prominent in SGD-3, which deals with health, where Kerala is ranked first with a score of 82. This index shows that Kerala is well on track in achieving the SDGs by the 2030 deadline,” the Chief Minister said.
Referring to the state’s success in handling COVID-19 by keeping the fatality rate at 0.4 per cent against the national figure of 1.43 per cent, Shri Vijayan said the state’s health system, supported by allied institutions like local self-government institutions and frontline departments, has been able to address the pandemic on multiple fronts.
He said the webinar series, in which internationally reputed experts will be sharing their insights, would provide the state an opportunity to learn from each other and, through shared experience, redesign its systems to address the future challenges.
Delivering the presidential address to the webinar, K K Shailaja, Minister for Health and Family Welfare, said Kerala is experimenting some novel programmes by working out action strategies to achieve the SDG in health sector.
Enlisting the outstanding achievements of the state in healthcare including its successful handling of COVID-19 pandemic, Shailaja said the state was faced with some challenges and vulnerabilities as well, especially relating to Non-Communicable Diseases and lifestyle health issues .The state’s special health missions like ‘Aardram’ have been trying their best to tackle these challenges scientifically and effectively.
Of late, the state has also made major strides in further improving mother and child health, and bringing more people within the ambit of the health insurance system.
Stating that Kerala healthcare system is a “model brand” and the state has many achievements to showcase before the world, Shailaja said the state will adopt all practical suggestions emerging from the webinar.
Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, delivered the key-note address at the opening session.
In his special address, Dr Vishwas Mehta, Chief Secretary, Government of Kerala, said unlike the rest of the country, the state is 15 years ahead in health infrastructure and has achieved the SDG goals on par with the global standards. “Our experience in dealing with COVID-19 has once again proved that the basic resilience of public health infrastructure ultimately stands out in confronting such challenges”, he added.
Welcoming the speakers to the webinar, Dr Rajan Khobragade, Principal Secretary Health, said the eminent participants in the event will be guiding the state to understand what are the next challenges and what can be planned at the policy level and intervention level. The state will immensely benefit with these discussions and discourses on various themes, he added.
Dr Rathan Kelkar, State Mission Director, National Health Mission, who proposed a vote of thanks, said through the conference, Kerala Health is attempting to bring together all stakeholders, facilitate learning and strengthen the goals of SDG.
Dr Sriram Venkitraman, Joint Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare also spoke. Dr. Saritha RL, Director Health Services and Dr Remla Beevi, Director Medical Education, were also present.
Staggered over five days, each session of the webinar will deliberate on a theme that is particularly relevant to the state.
