India, Switzerland pact soon to boost healthcare ties

India and Switzerland will soon sign a pact to give further impetus to cooperation in the field of healthcare.
Health & Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and his Swiss counterpart Alain Berset held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of World Health Assembly at Geneva and discussed various issues of cooperation.
Azad said in the continuum of strong Indo-Swiss bilateral cooperation, an MoU between the two countries will be inked soon to further broaden the scope of bilateral ties.
"Considerable progress has been made in this regard and an MoU in the field of health is being signed to promote bilateral cooperation between the two countries," Azad said.

Azad said the friendship between India and Switzerland dates back to the country's Independence and recalled that a treaty of friendship between them was signed in Delhi in 1948.
The major areas of cooperation include Non-Communicable Diseases including controlling the associated risk factors of tobacco use, harmful alcohol use, unhealthy diet, Communicable Diseases and Anti- Microbial resistance, Universal Health Coverage, Maternal & Child health, Sexual & Reproductive Health, Medical Research, Therapeutic Products, Electronic Medical Records and Global Health Governance.