Ministry of External Affairs Government of India

Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia, Ms. Marta Lucia Ramirez visited India from 1-3 October 2021. She was accompanied by Minister of Health and Social Protection Dr. Luiz Fernando Ruiz, government officials, representatives of private companies and educational institutions.

2. On 1st October 2021, Vice President of India Shri Venkaiah Naidu met Ms. Ramirez and exchanged views on bilateral cooperation in many areas. VP Ramirez also extended an invitation to Vice President of India to visit Colombia. On 2nd October 2021, Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar held a comprehensive bilateral dialogue with Ms. Ramirez. Minister of State for External Affairs Ms. Meenakashi Lekhi also met Ms. Ramirez on 3rd October 2021 with whom she had very productive discussions during her visit to Colombia last month.

3. Ms. Ramirez also held discussions with senior officials in the Ministry of Science and Technology as well as Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on exploring cooperation in biotechnology, co-production and technology transfers in the development of vaccines and pharmaceutical products. Later, two Letters of Intent for cooperation in the fields of biotechnology and medical research were signed by the Department of Biotechnology and ICMR with their Colombian counterparts.

4. Prior to the arrival of Ms. Ramirez, a 48 member delegation headed by Dr. Luiz Fernando Ruiz, Minister of Health and Social Protection travelled to Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru from 27-30 September and visited Indian pharmaceutical companies and Centres of Excellence. They also visited ISRO facilities and met representatives from New Space India Limited (NSIL) and the Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC).

5. Colombia is an important partner of India in Latin America and our bilateral relations have been expanding, particularly in the economic and commercial sphere despite pandemic disruptions. The visit of Ms. Ramirez to India was preceded by the visit of Minister of State for External Affairs Ms. Meenakashi Lekhi to Colombia from 4-6 September 2021. The visit will further contribute towards strengthening and diversification of India-Colombia bilateral ties.