Revanth signs Hyd up for WEF health chain

Hyderabad: Hyderabad will host the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR), the first thematic centre in India to focus on life sciences and healthcare, during the upcoming BioAsia 2024 to be held in the city from February 26 to 28. This centre will be inaugurated on February 28, as per a joint announcement made by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and WEF president Borge Brende in Davos, Switzerland on Tuesday.

Revanth Reddy met Borge Brende on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the WEF in Davos on Tuesday. The centre will be an autonomous, non-profit organisation focusing on policy and governance for healthcare and life sciences.

C4IR Telangana is the 18th centre to join the forum’s C4IR network, which spans four continents. The centre will help Telangana become an important node in the global network and consolidate its leadership position globally.

C4IR Telangana will be the only such centre in India with a thematic focus on healthcare and life sciences. The state accounts for a third of global vaccine output and is regarded as a leading life sciences hotspot in Asia. Also, the state accounts for about 35 per cent of India’s pharmaceutical production.

Revanth Reddy said that the partnership between WEF and the Telangana government will go a long way in improving the healthcare policies and providing better healthcare services to people of the state, especially in small towns, villages and interior areas that lack adequate facilities.

IT and industries minister D. Sridhar Babu said that the Telangana government has laid special focus on transforming the state as a “Health Tech Hub” and the partnership with WEF will facilitate the government to provide better health services to small towns and villages.

The Chief Minister also launched the ‘Invest in Telangana’ campaign at the WEF to attract global investments. The Telangana delegation, led by Revanth Reddy and comprising IT and industries minister D. Sridhar Babu and senior officials, held crucial meetings with representatives of renowned global companies on the day.

Revanth Reddy met Ethiopia’s Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Hassen and discussed investment opportunities in the state.

The Chief Minister also met Nasscom (National Association of Software and Service Companies) president Debjani Ghosh and discussed skill development in the state, exploring future strategies for skill enhancement, placement commitments and providing valuable employment opportunities for engineering and conventional degree students.

Revanth Reddy met Medtronic CEO Geoff Martha and Apollo Hospital vice-chairperson Preetha Reddy. They discussed plans for Telangana in the broad area of fusion of healthcare and technology.

The Chief Minister met Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative chairman George Vradenburg and also participated in an interactive session with delegates on community development.