At G20, PM Modi Pushes Action Plan on Drug-Terror Links and Global Healthcare Reform

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday addressed the G20 Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, unveiling a set of proposals aimed at redefining global development through the lens of India’s civilisational values.

Speaking at the session on “Inclusive and sustainable economic growth leaving no one behind”, PM Modi said that while the G20 has long guided global economic discourse, traditional development models have left large segments of the world—particularly Africa—deprived of resources and vulnerable to environmental pressure.

“With Africa hosting the G20 Summit for the first time, now is the right moment to revisit our development parameters and foster growth that is both inclusive and sustainable,” he said, adding that India’s philosophy of Integral Humanism offers a constructive pathway for future development.

PM Modi Flags Fentanyl Threat

Highlighting the growing menace of potent synthetic drugs, PM Modi warned that substances like fentanyl pose serious risks to public health, social order and global security. He proposed a dedicated G20 Initiative on Countering the Drug-Terror Nexus, designed to integrate financial, governance and security mechanisms.

The initiative, he said, would help dismantle trafficking networks, curb illicit financial flows and cut off an important funding stream for terrorism. “Let us weaken the wretched drug-terror economy,” he urged in a post on X.

Global Traditional Knowledge Repository Proposed

PM Modi also called for the creation of a Global Traditional Knowledge Repository, recognising that many nations safeguard sustainable, culturally rooted and environmentally balanced ways of life. Such a repository, he said, would allow countries to share time-tested practices that support holistic well-being.

“India has a rich heritage in this regard,” he noted, emphasising the value of pooling collective wisdom for global benefit.

Plan for G20 Global Healthcare Response Team

Emphasising the need for coordinated global action in emergencies, the Prime Minister proposed forming a G20 Global Healthcare Response Team. The objective is to create a network of trained medical specialists across G20 nations who can be rapidly deployed during natural disasters, health crises or other emergencies.

G20–Africa Skills Multiplier Initiative

Reinforcing India’s commitment to Africa’s development, PM Modi suggested launching the G20–Africa Skills Multiplier Initiative. Under this model, G20 nations would support a large-scale train-the-trainer programme across key sectors, with the goal of producing one million certified trainers in Africa over the next decade. These trainers, in turn, would help skill millions of young Africans and build long-term capacity.