In a meeting with his Norwegian colleague Jan Christian Vestre on Monday, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare J P Nadda discussed India’s goals in digital health, human resource development, maternal and child nutrition, and cooperative disease research.

According to Nadda, he suggested signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation between the two countries in the areas of medicine, health, and drug control.

“I met with Norway’s Health Minister, Mr. Jan Christian Vestre, today in New Delhi. I suggested establishing Memorandums of Understanding to advance our cooperation in drug regulation and health and medicine. discussed India’s top priorities in the areas of collaborative disease research, maternal and child nutrition, human resource development, and digital health. The Health Minister said on X, “Looking forward to expanding our healthcare partnership and further deepening bilateral relations between our two countries.”

Jan Christian Vestre was earlier cordially welcomed to New Delhi by Norway’s ambassador to India, May Elin-Stener.

Vestre said, “Dear friends, it’s wonderful to be back in India,” in a video that May Elin Stener posted on X. As Norway’s Minister of Trade, I made multiple trips there last year. I’m looking forward to strengthening our partnership in the health sector as I return this time as Minister of Health and Care Services. I can’t wait to meet partners influencing healthcare and innovation at tomorrow’s Bengaluru Tech Summit.

“Excited to welcome Norway’s Minister of Health and Care Services Jan Christian Vestre back to India,” the Norwegian ambassador remarked while posting the video on X. High-level meetings, discussions on innovation and digital health, and attendance at the Bengaluru Tech Summit are all part of his schedule.

Punya Salila Srivastava, the Union Health Secretary, presided over the Norway India Partnership Initiative’s (NIPI) annual conference earlier in October. May-Elin Stener, the ambassador of Norway, co-chaired the gathering. According to a press release from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the purpose of the meeting was to examine and approve the NIPI Progress Report 2025 and the budgeted work plans for 2025–2026 under Phase IV of the initiative.

“NIPI shows how convergence of efforts can yield results,” Punya Salila Srivastava said during the event. By using a whole-of-government strategy to achieve desired results, the Indian government is also participating in convergence with states and UTs. She stated that India is committed to sharing the initiative’s best practices for replication in other contexts, pointing out that the country is a suitable testing ground for innovation.

May-Elin Stener emphasized in her remarks at the gathering that this cooperation will celebrate its 20th anniversary next year. According to her, this collaboration has led to creative and catalytic actions that have produced noteworthy outcomes. She pointed out that the Indian government’s investment in this program is 26 times greater than Norway’s, demonstrating the significance of this partnership.

According to a news release, the NIPI is based on an agreement between the governments of Norway and India to work together to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and India’s National Health Policy. The mission of NIPI is to support India’s National Health Mission (NHM) in Bihar, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu & Kashmir in a strategic, innovative, and catalytic manner.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and NHMs of partner states are receiving vital technical support from the collaboration, which has successfully completed three phases and is now in its fourth phase.