India top health sector provider to United Nations

United Nations: India, which plays the role of the world's pharmacy by producing affordable drugs, was the top supplier in the health sector to the UN system last year with total sales of nearly $804 million in pharmaceuticals and medical services, according to a report by the world body.

Pharmaceuticals continued to be the main procurement category for India, the report said.

The UN procured goods and service totaling of $1.065 billion from India, making it overall the second largest provider to UN's total procurement of $17.7 billion from 221 countries and territories last year, the report said. Procurements from India made up about 6 per cent of the total.

The UN procured goods worth nearly $903 million from India, making it the top provider in the category, according to the report.

In addition, the UN procured about $162 million in services from India last year.

The UN's total procurement from India has dropped from $1.3 billion in 2015, a fall of about $200 million, even as the nation retained the second position in the roster of suppliers, the report said.

The report said that the decrease was due mostly to the UN reducing the pharmaceuticals it obtained from India last year.

India has been among the top ten suppliers to the UN since 2000, and has held the second place since 2012.

Food and management services were the other major categories in which the UN procured from India.

UNICEF, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), UNDP and WFP were among the agencies to which India supplied goods and services.

Overall, UN's overall procurement increased from $17.6 billion in 2015 to $17.7 billion last year.

The total procurement from the top supplier, the US, was $1.58 billion.