As the COVID pandemic continues to sweep the whole world, India, in particular, is emerging as a “savior” by distributing medicines across countries, becoming a “world pharmacy,” according to BollyInside, a news outlet.
The nation has provided more than 115 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to 97 nations as of December 31, 2020, according to the Ministry of External Affairs, which is responsible for maintaining the foreign relations of India.
Of all the European countries, the United Kingdom has been the largest beneficiary, receiving 5 million doses. India also provided 500,000 doses to Canada and 870,000 doses to Mexico. In addition, the nation provided UN Peacekeepers with 200,000 doses and UN health workers with 125,000 doses.
Under its policy called Neighbourhood First, India delivered nearly 55 million doses to South Asian nations, comprising of Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Afghanistan.
India supplied Afghanistan with nearly 1.5 million doses of COVID vaccines as WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “The breakdown in health services is having a rippling effect on the availability of basic and essential health care in Afghanistan, as well as on emergency response, polio eradication, and COVID-19 vaccination efforts.”
On January 16, 2022, India celebrated the first anniversary of the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive, with health care and frontline workers first in line to receive the jabs.
The country initiated “Vaccine Maitri,” the project that was started on January 16, 2021, to provide COVID-19 vaccines to countries around the world, supplying more than 115 million doses so far.
India supplied vaccine doses to other nations as well, such as Ukraine, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Among Latin American nations, Brazil received 4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, Argentina received 580,000 doses, Bolivia received 228,000 doses, and Paraguay received 600,000 doses.
In the African continent, India supplied Morocco with 7 million doses, South Africa with 1 million doses, Ghana with 1.7 million doses, Congo with 1.8 million doses, and Egypt with 50,000 doses of COVID vaccines. As far as Middle East Asian nations are concerned, India delivered UAE with 200,000 doses and Saudi Arabia with 4.5 million doses.
So far, India has been using three vaccines against COVID-19 in the nationwide immunization drive, which include Covishield, Covaxin, and Sputnik V. In December 2020, the nation approved two more vaccines under emergency use authorization, Corbevax and Covovax, which are not yet available.
As of January 15, 2022, India’s cumulative COVID-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 1.56 billion.
Undeniably, India is one of the largest providers of generic drugs globally. It is often referred to as the “Pharmacy of the world.” Globally, India had distributed generic drugs such as hydroxychloroquine, remdesivir, and paracetamol, as well as PPE kits, diagnostic tools, ventilators, masks, gloves, and other medical supplies in order to help countries deal with the pandemic.
