Overview
- Event: Fourth Global High-Level Ministerial Conference on AMR, held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (exact dates unspecified, likely 2024).
- Outcome: Adoption of the Jeddah Commitments, a global action framework to combat AMR through a One Health approach (integrating human, animal, and environmental health).
- Purpose: Translate the 2024 UN General Assembly (UNGA) Political Declaration on AMR into actionable, measurable steps for member states.
Key Objectives of the Jeddah Commitments
- Strengthen One Health Governance:
- Establish national AMR action plans with cross-sectoral coordination (health, agriculture, environment).
- Integrate AMR into pandemic preparedness frameworks.
- Optimize Antimicrobial Use:
- Reduce misuse/overuse of antibiotics in humans, livestock, and aquaculture.
- Promote antimicrobial stewardship programs and regulate over-the-counter antibiotic sales.
- Enhance Surveillance & Data Sharing:
- Develop robust AMR surveillance systems (e.g., tracking resistant pathogens in hospitals, farms).
- Share data globally through platforms like WHO’s GLASS (Global Antimicrobial Resistance and Use Surveillance System).
- Accelerate Innovation:
- Fund R&D for new antibiotics, diagnostics, vaccines, and alternatives (e.g., bacteriophages).
- Address market failures (e.g., “push-pull” incentives for antibiotic development).
- Mobilize Resources:
- Secure funding for AMR initiatives through domestic budgets, international aid, and public-private partnerships.
Significance
- Global Health Threat: AMR causes ~5 million deaths annually (2024 estimates). Without action, deaths could rise to 10 million/year by 2050.
- Economic Impact: AMR could cost the global economy $100 trillion by 2050 due to healthcare burdens and lost productivity.
- Equity Focus: Prioritizes low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where AMR burdens are highest due to limited healthcare access and antibiotic misuse.
One Health Approach in Practice
- Human Health: Strict antibiotic prescriptions, infection control in hospitals.
- Animal Health: Phase out non-therapeutic antibiotic use in livestock (e.g., growth promoters).
- Environment: Monitor AMR hotspots (e.g., pharmaceutical wastewater, agricultural runoff).
Challenges
- Implementation Gaps: Weak health systems in LMICs hinder policy enforcement.
- Funding Shortfalls: AMR receives <1% of global health R&D funding.
- Behavioral Barriers: Public and clinician awareness remains low; cultural practices drive antibiotic misuse.
- Global Coordination: Fragmented efforts across sectors and countries.
Global Context
- Predecessors: Builds on the 2016 UNGA Political Declaration on AMR and 2022 Global Action Plan on AMR.
- Linked Initiatives:
- WHO’s AWaRe Classification: Guides antibiotic use (Access, Watch, Reserve).
- FAO-OIE-WHO Tripartite Collaboration: Coordinates One Health efforts.
- G7/G20 AMR Agendas: Prioritize AMR in global governance.
Next Steps
- National Targets: Countries to submit revised AMR action plans by 2025, aligned with Jeddah Commitments.
- Monitoring: Biannual progress reviews at global AMR conferences.
- 2024–2030 Milestones:
- Halve inappropriate antibiotic use in humans/animals by 2030.
- Ensure 80% of countries have functional AMR surveillance by 2026.