Virtual 6^th Annual Multi-Stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals

“Science, technology and innovation for a sustainable and resilient COVID-19 recovery, and effective pathways of inclusive action towards the SDGs”.

India Statement

By Hon'ble Minister, Ministry of Science & Technology Dr. Harsh Vardhan

4 May 2021

Mr. President,

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

There is no doubt that Science, Technology and Innovation is a powerful enabler, which needs to be leveraged to accelerate progress for sustainable development and for a resilient recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic threw one challenge after another across various fields like logistics, trade and medicine; it has been the unique out of the box solutions provided by innovators across the world which have helped save millions of lives and livelihoods.

Technology-driven creative business models and service delivery have a vast potential to fast-track the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals in a manner that is cost-effective, transparent and inclusive. We need an enabling environment for facilitating access to technology for developing countries to tackle challenges related to sustainable development.

India has long been fostering Science Technology and Innovation and nurturing an enabling ecosystem to incubate and scale revolutionary ideas, help improve the quality of lives of people and provide solutions to global problems.

India has emerged as an inevitable member of leading international scientific coalitions and global efforts in vaccine research. Two vaccines, including one indigenously developed, have already been granted emergency authorization. Additionally, as many as more than 20 candidates are under various stages of development.

We are working actively with GAVI, WHO and ACT Accelerator. We have also called for WTO to suspend intellectual property rights related to COVID-19 for a limited period of time, to ensure rapid scaling-up of manufacturing of vaccines and ensuring accessibility and affordability of vaccines for all.

In the spirit of South-South Cooperation, India is collaborating with the Technology Facilitation Mechanism and UN’s Interagency Task Team (IATT) in supporting pilot countries from Africa and other developing world in formulating and implementing their Science, Technology and Innovation for Sustainable Development Goals Roadmaps.

Science, Technology and Innovation should become an inclusive and equitable tool for SDG delivery based on affordable, accessible and available technological innovation. In a post-COVID world when we need to address long term challenges of sustainability, it is imperative that we utilise existing mechanisms of partnership by pooling resources and sharing of knowledge. We believe that strengthened Science, Technology and Innovation cooperation with a spirit of collaboration is a key to accelerate our collective response to COVID-19 and also towards sustainable development.

I thank you.