ReAct statement on the final version of the Political Declaration on AMR

2024-09-13

On Monday September 9, the final version of the Political Declaration on AMR was submitted to office of the President of the 79th General Assembly (PGA), by the Ambassadors of Malta and Barbados, co-conveners of the political negotiation process. In their transmission letter they note that they believe the current text is ‘capable of achieving broad consensus’.

Compared to the declaration from 2016, it is clear that the new declaration is a major step forward. The introduction of a target to reduce deaths from antibiotic resistance (bacterial AMR) by 10% by 2030 is ambitious and can set direction for global collective efforts. The mandate to the Quadripartite secretariat to establish the ‘Independent Evidence Panel’ – a longstanding recommendation to improve global governance – has also finally been given.

Finally, it is very encouraging to see governments committing to develop and setting national targets within their national action plans across sectors. The process to develop such targets will provide a more exact picture of how exactly AMR impact individual countries, which in turn can help generate political will to address the problem, and give direction on how to prioritize interventions in countries. National targets can also bring more clarity on how exactly countries’ collective efforts will achieve the overarching 10% mortality reduction goal by 2030.

More financing needed – for stronger and more effective response

That said, there are crucial areas where the declaration falls far too short of what is needed. ReAct is particularly disappointed about how reluctant governments – in particular those in the global North – have been in committing financing to catalyze a stronger and more effective global response. Without dramatically increased financing, it is hard to see how most of the commitments in the Political Declaration, can be transformed into action that actually makes a dent in the problem of antibiotic resistance – particularly in the global South.

Raphael Chanda, Acting Director of ReAct Africa, says:

“Let’s be honest – a commitment of mobilizing US$ 100 million by 2030 is a fraction of a drop in the ocean. The absence of a clear financing roadmap in this Political Declaration leaves behind the countries in the global South who carry the highest burden of the negative consequences of antibiotic resistance. This will exacerbate global inequalities and undercut global efforts to achieve many of the SDGs.”

Aside from financing, commitments in several other areas do also not reach the mark of catalyzing change. Improving sustainable access to effective antibiotics for all, including by reinvigorating the dry antibiotic pipeline, and reducing obvious misuse of antibiotics, such as for growth promotion in animals, are areas where ambitions should have been much bigger.

While these shortcomings may reflect just how difficult times are for multilateralism in 2024, it does send a worrying signal that the understanding of the problem’s urgency and dimensions at political level is still not where it should be.

Dr. SS Lal, Director of ReAct Asia Pacific says:

“Going forward is it clear that we as civil society and communities have a clear task in continuing to raise awareness, and demand that governments prioritize the issue and deliver on the commitments set out in this declaration.”

Anna Sjöblom, Director of ReAct Europe says:

“This Political Declaration certainly falls short in a number of places where we would have expected more. But that said, it is has raised the bar for global collective action not least through an unprecedented mobilization of civil society and communities worldwide for example through the “From People to Leaders campaign” – building on that towards the ministerial meeting in Saudi Arabia in a few months, we hope governments will be ready then to bring their finance ministers and civil society to the table.”