Chennai: The Indian government is looking at improving expenditure on health to 2.5 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP), said a Union Ministry report.
It added that the country’s government spending on health was 1.17 per cent of the GDP in 2015-16 and stated that the target is set to be achieved by 2025 to meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Union Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the National Indicator Framework Baseline report that includes 41 indicators to track the country’s health and well-being.
The report has been developed to provide a benchmark to track the country’s progress towards SDG targets at the national level till 2030. To track the progress, the period 2015-16 has been used as the baseline period.
Among primary health indicators that the government is focusing on improving in the next decade are maternal mortality ratio (MMR), which is the number of women dying per one lakh live births, deaths of newborns and of children under five years, in epidemics such as AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, and premature mortality from non-communicable diseases.
A resolution was adopted by global leaders at the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly, including India, held in 2015 on “Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, where it had adopted the SDGs.
According to reports, officials have stated that the spending on health will be increased in a phased manner.
“India’s health indicators are improving at a good rate. If you look at the MMR, India’s present rate is below the Millennium Development Goal target of 139 per one lakh live births. The country is on track to achieve the SDG target of below 70 by 2030,” reports quoted officials as saying.
To monitor the SDGs and related targets, the MoSPI has developed a National Indicator Framework (NIF) comprising 306 national indicators in consultation with central ministries, departments, states and other stakeholders.