UK partners with Pakistan to tackle the threat of antibiotic resistance

Islamabad: The UK has expanded its partnership with Pakistan to tackle the growing threat of antibiotic resistance in the country. The UK will invest more than £2.7 million in Pakistan to strengthen disease surveillance systems, improve laboratory infrastructure and offer six professional fellowships to senior scientists to build expertise.

The programme is led by the UK’s Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), with Mott MacDonald contracted as the Management Agent of the fund, and Development Alternatives Inc (DAI) appointed as the lead project partner to deliver most of the investment in Pakistan.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) happens when microbes including bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites no longer respond to the drugs we use to treat them, including antibiotics. This sometimes leaves us powerless to treat what we often consider to be routine infections. This poses a great threat to both human and animal health. Drug resistant infections cause hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide each year with the figures expected to rise.

The UK is committed to tackling this important global challenge by working with their partners across the world. The grant to Pakistan will help generate comprehensive data on antimicrobial resistance and will be complemented by six professional fellowships offering tailored professional development to senior scientists who are engaged in AMR surveillance in Pakistan.

Commenting on the announcement, Thomas Drew CMG, the British High Commissioner to Pakistan said; “Today’s announcement is another illustration of the UK’s commitment to working with Pakistan to help tackle global issues. Growing anti-microbial resistance is killing hundreds of thousands of people across the world each year. The grant will support the technical development of the health infrastructure in Pakistan, drive innovation, and build greater scientific links between our two nations; and it should lead to the saving of lives.”

Executive Director of National Institute of Health, Major General Aamer Ikram said: “We’re very pleased to collaborate closely with UK Government through Fleming Fund grant for supporting us in our efforts to prevent anti-microbial resistance in Pakistan; we see them as a key partner in providing critical technical and laboratory strengthening support”

Globally the programme has assessed some 160 laboratories and will support over 250 during the course of the programme. To date the Fund has awarded over 20 grants across the regional grant, country grant and fellowship scheme portfolio.

Estimates from the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance suggest some 700,000 people die each year from drug resistant infections. It is believed that if the current trends continue, AMR could claim up to 10 million lives a year and cost £85 trillion of economic output by 2050.

Fundamental changes in the way antibiotics are used and consumed are needed to avert this growing threat. More data is also needed to understand how resistance develops and how drugs are used around the world.