Commonwealth leaders discuss AMR
Commonwealth leaders have convened in Kigali, Rwanda, to discuss the challenge of antimicrobial resistance and the serious threat that it poses to human, animal, and plant health.
Hosted by the Global Leaders Group (GLG) on Anti-Microbial Resistance, the meeting took place on the margins of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kigali. Moderator of the event was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health of Malta, Christopher Fearne MP, who engaged in a vivid panel discussion of political leaders on the political actions needed to tackle AMR.
Panelists concluded that AMR spreads rapidly around the globe and is already described as the next pandemic. A recent publication in the Lancet revealed that as much as 4.95 million deaths in 2019 have been attributed to AMR resistant infections. This number is greater than the number of people who died from HIV/AIDS and malaria that year combined.
During the panel discussions, it was concluded that the consequences of inaction on AMR are dangerous, and it was acknowledged that AMR is not just a health but also an economic problem. The need for further action to address this issue was reinforced.