New Delhi, July 1 : Expressing desire to get India's pharmacopoeia acknowledged and appreciated worldwide, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Friday that the country has become the 'Pharmacy of the World' by specialising in generic medicine formulation, manufacturing, and by supplying affordable medicines to the world. "But we still need to strengthen research in the pharmaceuticals sector," Mandaviya said while addressing the Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP) Commission Conference 2022 on the theme 'Addressing Medicine Quality for Future'. "Till today, four countries -- Afghanistan, Ghana, Nepal and Mauritius -- have accepted IP as a book of standards. We should make a roadmap and move forward so that more countries accept our pharmacopoeia," he said. Highlighting the role of government at the international level, Mandaviya said, "As a result of the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and our work in that direction, the world has started recognising us and giving importance to our work. We should focus on how our pharmacopoeia can take advantage of this, focusing on international trade and industries based on our strength in indigenous medicines. "Pharmacopoeia is important to maintain standard quality of our medical products -- vaccines, medicines, equipment etc., and to keep an eye on the effect of these medicines on patients," he said. Pointing out that India is the world's largest supplier of generic medication and accounts for 20 per cent of the worldwide supply of generics by volume, he said that during the Covid-19 pandemic, India delivered accessible and affordable vaccines to 150 countries. "While delivering vaccines and other generic medicines to so many countries, we never compromised with the quality and standards or delivered sub-standard or spurious drugs. India has earned global accolades as a result of this," he added. /IANS