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People around the world set to benefit from extra UK
investment to develop innovative treatments for
drug-resistant infections which cost millions of lives every
year
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£4.5 million funding package for research and development
group takes total UK investment to nearly £19 million
New treatments to tackle drug-resistant infections that pose the
greatest threat to global health are to be developed following a
multi-million-pound investment by the UK government.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) – where serious infections have
evolved so much that antibiotics and other current treatments are
no longer effective – is a silent killer costing millions of
lives across the world a year, with one in five of these deaths
in children under the age of five.
The £4.5 million investment made by the government’s Global AMR
Innovation Fund (GAMRIF) will support the Global Antibiotic
Research and Development Partnership (GARDP) to develop new
treatments for drug-resistant infections identified by the World
Health Organization as the greatest threat to global health and
development.
The UK has now invested £19 million in GARDP’s programmes,
including developing new and improved treatments for neonatal
sepsis - a leading cause of death in new-borns - hospital
acquired bacterial infections, and pneumonia.
Recent data shows that around 1.3 million people died of
resistant bacterial infections globally in 2019, more than HIV or
malaria.
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care said:
Antimicrobial resistance is the greatest threat to global health,
tragically killing millions of people every year, but it isn’t
widely known about.
The consequences of not addressing this silent pandemic now could
be catastrophic and result in a future where we are unable to
treat common illnesses such as pneumonia and infections in
newborns with modern medicines.
The UK’s investment will develop vital treatments, protecting
millions of people in low-and middle-income countries and around
the world to bolster our global health security.
The funding will also help develop a novel treatment for
gonorrhoea, a sexually transmitted infection that has been
identified by the World Health Organization as urgently requiring
new antibiotics.
Today’s commitment forms part of the UK Government’s 20-year
vision and five-year National Action Plan for Antimicrobial
Resistance – an investment that cements the UK’s leading role in
tackling AMR across the world.
Manica Balasegaram, GARDP’s Executive Director, said:
The UK’s leadership in accelerating the development and access of
treatments for drug-resistant infections is exemplary.
GAMRIF’s investment over the years has helped us build a robust
late-stage clinical pipeline of new and improved treatments for
gonorrhoea, newborns with sepsis, and serious bacterial
infections in hospitalised adults.
We look forward to their continued support as we ramp up efforts
to preserve the power of antibiotics.
In 2021, the UK Presidency of the G7 also maintained AMR as a
multilateral priority and it was recognised as a key health issue
by the G7 health and finance ministers.
Prof , UK Special Envoy on AMR,
said:
Collaboration with international partners is vital to tackle
global challenges, as shown by the G7 Health Ministers
reaffirming their support for GARDP this year.
I am thrilled that the UK will be working in partnership with
GARDP to deliver crucial research as part of GAMRIF’s commitment
to a One Health approach.
Together we are leading efforts to combat AMR where the burden of
infection is greatest, and we will use this investment to develop
new treatments for drug-resistant infections to protect the
world’s most vulnerable.
The partnership between the UK and GARDP is based on the shared
understanding that developing new treatments and ensuring
responsible access for all in need are inseparable. Funded by UK
aid, this work supports research and development to reduce the
threat of antimicrobial
