New Delhi, March 24 (IANS) Secretary (South) at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Neena Malhotra, on Tuesday, expressed India’s commitment to South-South Cooperation for furthering science and technology collaboration ranging from affordable healthcare to smart agriculture to water and marine resources management with Global South partners.

Malhotra adressed the ‘CSIR Capabilities Discovery Session’ with Ambassadors and High Commissioners of the Global South on Tuesday. The event was organised by the MEA in partnership with CSIR.

“Secretary (South), Dr. Neena Malhotra delivered the keynote address and highlighted India’s commitment to South-South Cooperation for furthering science and technology collaboration ranging from affordable healthcare to smart agriculture to water and marine resources management with Global South partners to develop and deploy affordable and scalable S&T solutions for a sustainable future,” the MEA stated.

In January, Prime Minister Narendra Modi underscored the importance of the Global South charting new pathways. While inaugurating the 28th Conference of Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth (CSPOC) at the Samvidhan Sadan in New Delhi, he emphasised India’s role in voicing the concerns of the Global South on every global platform.

Recalling India’s G20 Presidency, he noted that the country placed the priorities of the Global South at the center of the global agenda. PM Modi highlighted India’s consistent efforts to ensure that innovations benefit not only its own citizens but also partner nations across the Commonwealth.

“Today, as the world is passing through an era of unprecedented change, it is also time to create new pathways for the Global South. India is strongly raising the concerns of the Global South on every global platform. During its G20 presidency, India placed the concerns of the Global South at the center of the global agenda. India’s constant effort is that whatever innovations we make, they should benefit the entire Global South and the Commonwealth countries. We are also building open-source tech platforms so that our partner countries in the Global South can develop systems similar to those in India,” said PM Modi.

–IANS

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