New Delhi, Nov 14: After the meeting of Information Ministers, Health Ministers of Saarc countries would be meeting here, for the first time, from today to discuss health related issues of concern to the region.
This would be preceeded by an official level meeting a day earlier. The ministerial meeting would be inaugurated by Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat on November 14.
The meeting, to be chaired by Health Minister Sushma Swaraj, would discuss among other things national policy and programme of traditional system of medicines, issues relating to quality control and standardisation of traditional system of drugs and IPR related issues and integration of traditional system of medicines in national health programmes and national health care delivery system.
Emerging and re-emerging diseases, disease surveillance on Sars, HIV, AIDS and TB, drugs, pharmaceuticals and food certification standardisation of trade related issues, population stabilisation and reproduction child health and immunisation related issues would also figure in the meeting.
The Saarc Council of Ministers, the highest policy making body of seven-member Saarc, which met in Kathmandu last year had concluded that there was an urgent need to cooperate on the health issues amongst the Saarc nations.


Bureau Report