India 'stands out' in terms of its COVID-19 vaccine policy, says IMF’s Gita Gopinath

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United Nations: Chief Economist of the International monetary fund (IMF), Gita Gopinath on Monday (March 8) hailed India’s COVID-19 vaccine policy. 

India has been at the forefront in fighting the coronavirus pandemic and ‘really stands out’ in terms of its vaccine policy, highlighted Gita Gopinath.

The country has been playing a very important role during the COVID-19 crisis by manufacturing and shipping vaccines to numerous nations.

In an interactive session on the occasion of International Women's Day, Ms Gopinath said, "I also want to mention that India really stands out in terms of its vaccine policy. If you look at where exactly there is one manufacturing hub for vaccines in the world - that will be India."

The IMF’s chief economist also lauded the work of Serum Institute of India, saying it produces the most number of vaccines in the world in a regular year and has been manufacturing the COVID-19 vaccine doses that are being distributed to countries around the globe.

"India has been at the forefront in fighting this deadly pandemic," she said, noting that India has been providing vaccines through grants not only to its neighbour countries but the middle-east as well. 

“The country has been playing a vital role in helping the world in the global health crisis through its vaccination policies,” she said.

The economist also stated that India makes up about 7 percent of world GDP based on purchasing power parity terms and can contribute significantly to global economic recovery

"So when you're that large, what happens in India has implications for many other countries in the world, especially countries in the region. So it was very hard hit but you do see the recovery coming back as the country has reopened, activities returning," she said.

Additionally, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected an impressive 11.5 percent growth rate for India in 2021, making the country the only major economy of the world to register a double-digit growth this year amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Now because of its size, when you have India growing, it increases demand for goods from other parts of the world and that's a big positive," she said.