Vizag to host WHO global conference

Visakhapatnam: The Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone (AMTZ) marks a momentous milestone in the medical device manufacturing sector with the announcement of the 4th WHO Global Medical Device Forum at AMTZ Campus from December 13 to 15, 2018. 

The WHO Global Medical Device Forum is most esteemed global congregation on medical devices. It is for the first time in the history of WHO that the conference is being hosted in India and would embark its footprints for the development of technical excellence in the health sector. In all, 2,000 delegates from 194 UN Nations, including India, are expected to attend the conference.  

The AMTZ is an enterprise under the Andhra Pradesh government   set up in a 270-acre zone and dedicated to medical device manufacturing with 200-250 manufacturing units, common scientific facilities, expo halls, convention centre, incubation services providing one stop solution for all manufacturers. 

The Kalam Institute of Health Technology (KIHT) aims to facilitate focused research on critical components pertaining to medical devices by supporting institutions involved with research and development, industry, policy makers and knowledge repositories.

Named after President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, KIHT has been set up with the objective to distinguish basic gaps in medical technology and propose the government to do concentrated spending on such areas and help bridge gaps between academic research and market access, said  Dr Jitendar Kumar Sharma, adviser, Health and Medical Technology, Government of AP, MD and Chief Executive Officer of AMTZ.

As approved by the Centre, the AMTZ would be hosting 4th WHO Global Medical Device Forum at its campus which would include plenary, panels, parallel sessions, workshops, exhibition and poster sessions.

The outcome would be a compilation of the best practices and guidelines on medical devices for integration into national health plans. It is for the first time that the WHO Global Forum is being hosted in the country and AMTZ has been selected to host it, Jitendar Kumar Sharma added.