Figure 1 Technician Sandy Cheng helps Dr Sophie St. Hilaire on a nanobubbles research project in Hong Kong
Professor Dame Sally Davies
UK Special Envoy on Antimicrobial Resistance
The UK’s global partnerships are fighting against drug resistance.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is happening right now across the world. The United Nations and its member countries are committed to ensuring healthy lives for all by 2030. The Sustainable Development Goals depend on us ensuring everyone, everywhere is safe from this threat which does not respect borders.
International collaboration
This year marks a turning point for AMR global policy making.
Under the UK’s G7 Presidency, G7 Leaders announced bold steps on AMR and agreed that they need to act right now. G7 Health Ministers have committed to improve antimicrobial innovation, supply chain resilience and knowledge about AMR in the environment.
These developments could ensure that people around the world have access to the right treatments at the right time – and that they won’t cost the earth.
Everyone can work together to address AMR. From washing your hands to handling antibiotics with care, we can protect our antimicrobials and our world.
Data enables evidence-based decisions
When high-quality AMR data is produced and shared locally, nationally and globally, then decision-makers can act appropriately. The UK Government’s Fleming Fund is a UK Aid programme supporting countries across Africa and Asia to collect and use AMR data effectively.
New data, partially funded by the Fleming Fund and published soon in the Lancet, will provide an improved estimate of the burden of AMR around the world. Never has the Fleming Fund’s work, helping countries to collect high quality data to inform good AMR policy, been more important.
The Fleming Fund’s country partnerships support countries and strengthen systems. This includes ensuring labs have access to clean running water, to installing pioneering equipment– including mass spectrometers to identify bacteria in just two minutes.
Targeted training, with expertise from leading UK and international institutions, is building the capacity of laboratory staff to support the health of the most vulnerable around the world.
A clean, green way to cut antimicrobial use in fish farming
The Global AMR Innovation Fund is a UK aid fund that works with international researchers to develop new interventions and reduce antimicrobial use.
Nanobubbles’ peculiar physical and chemical properties are already being exploited to clean wastewater. Now researchers are hoping to repurpose this technology to combat antimicrobial resistance in food production.
Nanobubbles could kill pathogens, without harming the fish and shrimp.
In South East Asia, where aquaculture is booming, solar cells could be used to power nanobubbler kits on off-the-grid farms.
We all play a role in tackling AMR
Everyone can work together to address AMR. From washing your hands to handling antibiotics with care, we can protect our antimicrobials and our world. With every single one of our international partners and friends, the UK hopes to strengthen global health security for all, for good.