New Caricom/India health initiative launched

The invitation was extended by Indian Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, EVKS Elangovan, when he addressed the opening of the first ever Caricom-India economic forum at the Centre of Excellence in Macoya on Monday.

Trade and Industry Minister Ken Valley observed that health has been one of the main areas of Caricom/India cooperation over the years, and highlighted the provision of anti-retroviral drugs from India for persons living with HIV/AIDS as one of the main ways in which the Indian government continues to assist regional governments to develop their respective health sectors. Elangovan then disclosed that India was willing to take its health partnership with Caricom to the next level. "To further promote cooperation in the health care sector further, we propose to invite the health ministers of Caricom to visit India later this year," he said.

Elangovan explained that the purpose of Caricom health ministers going to India would be to provide them with a first hand opportunity to see "the progress we have made in India in the field of health care."

The Indian government minister identified primary health care, corporate hospitals and the pharmaceuticals industry as but a few areas which India and Caricom could explore "avenues for collaboration." The Caribbean has long proven to be a very lucrative market for Indian pharmaceutical drugs, and nowhere in the region has this been the case more than Trinidad and Tobago.

This year, the trade in Indian pharmaceutical drugs in TT reached US$50 million and many of these products have been included in the Chronic Disease Assistance Programme (CDAP) created by Government in 2003 to provide medication at no cost for persons who suffer from certain illnesses.

In the 2004/2005 Budget, Prime Minister Patrick Manning announced there would be no age restrictions for CDAP. Health Minister John Rahael said the data from CDAP would be used to determine how the health sector could best respond to various illnesses and current health sector reform initiatives (such as CDAP) would serve as important forerunners to larger initiatives such as the establishment of a National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in TT. Rahael has expressed optimism that an NHIS model would be selected by year’s end and that the system would be fully in place by 2007.