More than 56 exhibitors – who participated in the expo – and buyers from 19 countries discussed and expressed their interest in trade in traditional medicine…reports Asian Lite News
The first “SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) B2B Conference and Expo on Traditional Medicine”, which concluded here on Sunday, created a platform for buyers and sellers from different countries to explore trade potential to serve the needs of the people.
An incremental trade interest of over Rs 590 crore was generated during intense meetings among the buyers and sellers at the conference.
This first-of-its-kind conference and expo under the SCO initiative was inaugurated by Union Ayush minister Sarbananda Sonowal on March 2 here.
More than 150 delegates from 17 countries attended the two-day conference and four-day expo.
“It is a moment of great realisation that this wonderful initiative has borne fruit with trade interest of more than Rs 590 crore generated during the event. While this marks the immediate success of the expo, the conference also laid the foundation for further interaction and expansion of cooperation among the states under the SCO initiative,” Union Minister Sonowal said.
“I must thank the Prime Minister at this point as his vision brought this concept of expanding the horizon of traditional medicine among the member states of SCO, leading to the event’s successful hosting,” he said.
“While the scope of trade in the Ayush market remains buoyant, the event helped expand its horizon to a wider international audience with a noble aim to provide an enriched quality of life with the help of traditional medicine. This is a huge shot in the arm for the Indian Ayush market as this event provided the platform to further the trade potential among the SCO member states for improving the quality of lives of people,” the minister said.
Under the aegis of the Ministry of Ayush, Invest India conducted B2B meetings in a dedicated B2B lounge at the event with the support of Ayushexcil (Ayush Export Promotion Council).
More than 56 exhibitors – who participated in the expo – and buyers from 19 countries discussed and expressed their interest in trade in traditional medicine.
Over 50 one-to-one meetings between buyers and sellers were conducted on the first day of the conference. Among the spectrum of traditional medicinal products, maximum interest was seen in product categories such as Ayurvedic medicine, herbal nutraceuticals, Ayurvedic cosmetics, etc.
Over 75 meetings took place on the second day of the event with participants from India, Tajikistan, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Bahrain and Sri Lanka.
The trade interest of Rs 590 crore was received in the B2B meetings from companies such as Damaira Pharma, AIMIL Global, Herbal Strategi Homecare, Almaty, Dindayal Industries and Fidalgo Healthcare among others.
The interest was received across product categories such as Ayurvedic gel and oil, capsules, Ayurvedic hair remedy products, nutraceuticals, Ayurvedic home care and hygiene and veterinary products. The industry received as many as nine Letters of Intent.
Speaking about India’s commitment to promoting traditional healthcare systems, the Union Minister said, “India remains deeply invested in promoting evidence-based traditional healthcare systems with a rich heritage of patient care for thousands of years. The establishment of the WHO Global Centre of Traditional Medicine in Jamnagar is a step in this direction.”
The B2B conference witnessed detailed presentations and deliberations from SCO and partner countries on “Regulatory Framework for Traditional Medicine”, products and practices, including pharmacopoeia, quality assurance and research.
There was deliberation on how to promote traditional medicine. Sessions like ‘Know your buyer’ and ‘B2B meetings’ for discussing specific product-wise, export and import opportunities and deeper economic partnerships helped garner interest for market access across SCO countries.
The event aimed to unlock trade opportunities in traditional medicine amongst SCO and partner countries.
The discussions aimed at understanding trade patterns and market scenarios from pharma and drug manufacturers’ points of view.
Speaking about the scope of the trade from Assam and Northeast India, the Ayush minister said, “With the successful end of this first-of-its-kind SCO Conference on traditional medicine, we have a unique opportunity in our hands to step up and deliver to the huge market access that the expo has created. Given the region’s rich biodiversity, it is important for our entrepreneurs to build on to the discussions at the event and take the opportunity to the next level.”
“The huge potential of medicinal plants in the region has always been underlined. The expo provided the much sought global exposure and the springboard of success for our local agri-prenuers and traditional medicine practitioners,” he said.
The Ministry of Ayush has been working on various initiatives under the SCO mandate. In February this year, a virtual conference of experts and practitioners of traditional medicine was organised where experts from 25 countries of SCO participated. The draft terms of reference of the Expert Working Group on Traditional Medicine was approved during a meeting of experts held in New Delhi last month.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), or Shanghai Pact, is a Eurasian political, economic, and security alliance of an eight-member multilateral organisation, established in June 2001 in Shanghai, China.
SCO includes eight member states, three observers and 14 dialogue partner countries. India was granted observer status at the July 2005 Astana Summit and the status of a full member on June 9, 2017, at the SCO Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan.
The draft approved at the expert level will now be subjected to other respective country administrative procedures and finally adopted at the Head of the States Summit.
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