A Prepared India is a Prepared World
The GOI has successfully addressed challenges over the past decades through major investments in the nation’s public health institutions, dedicated resources and platforms to expand one of the largest public health workforces in the world, and a sustained commitment to confront challenging disease control priorities in the country and the region. At the time of this publication, the GOI is reinvigorating its pledge to advance public health with renewed investments in public health institutions across India and plans to significantly expand the public health workforce.
At the invitation of the GOI, CDC remains committed to work with country partners in India on several of the most important public health challenges of our time. From smallpox to SARS-CoV-2, CDC collaborations with India have benefited both our countries, the entire region, and indeed the world.
More than 50 years ago, CDC detailed an epidemiologist to the World Health Organization (WHO) country office in India, who worked alongside the GOI’s smallpox eradication program to eradicate one of the world’s most dangerous pathogens. Almost three decades later in 2001, CDC formally established a country office in India, with an initial focus on HIV/AIDS prevention. Today, CDC’s mutually beneficial collaboration with the GOI has grown to include life-saving efforts on tuberculosis, influenza, antimicrobial resistance, vaccine-preventable diseases, and strengthening of laboratory systems, disease surveillance, public health workforce capacity and emergency management.
Given the population size, burden of infectious and noncommunicable diseases, and location, the overall success of global disease control and elimination efforts requires collaboration in India. CDC and the GOI are well-placed to leverage past and present successful global public health initiatives to better respond to the world’s most pressing public health challenges.
The following sections provide a brief background of CDC’s collaboration with the GOI in priority areas. The sections highlight key factors and collaborations that helped drive success and offer a brief snapshot of CDC’s current partnerships with the GOI.
