Victoria, Seychelles, 16th May 2017 - The World Health Organisation (WHO) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and the Centre for Disease Dynamics Economics and Policy in South Africa (CDDEP) hosted a 3 day workshop from 8th to 10th May 2017 to discuss strategies to fight anti-microbial resistance (AMR) in the country.

Speaking on behalf of the organisation at the opening of the workshop at the MoH Headquarters, the WHO Liaison Officer Dr. Bhupinder Aulakh said that antibiotic resistance is the biggest threat to global health. Dr. Aulakh said that globally 480,000 people develop multidrug-resistant tuberculosis each year and that without urgent actions, the world is heading for a post-antibiotic era where even common infections and minor injuries can be fatal.

It was the Minister of Health Jean Paul Adam who officially launched the workshop in the presence of other senior management of the Ministry and participants, where he called for all partners to make more responsible use of antibiotics. Participants attending the workshop are from multiple sectors including Ministries responsible for human health, animal health and the environment as well as partners in the private sectors in health, animal husbandry, veterinary services, agriculture, pharmacy, and education.

With WHO’s support, Dr. Kim Faure from CDDEP facilitated the workshop, leading discussions on the impact of AMR, identifying strategies to combat this issue, and carrying out a thorough situation analysis of the human, animal and environmental health sectors in Seychelles. The outcome of discussions has informed the development of a National Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance for the country. The development of such an action plan is in line with recommendations of the United Nations Political Declaration on AMR and the World Health Assembly Resolution 68.7 which calls on all member states, of which Seychelles is one, to have in place national action plans on AMR by 2017.

Seychelles is thus now well on track to achieve this recommendation. At the end of the three days, the participants have identified an AMR Framework for Seychelles with 5 key strategic priorities for implementation by the country. These include (1) “One Health” approach, (2) Education and Awareness, (3) Surveillance, (4) Prevention and (5) Antimicrobial use. ‘One Health’, an approach which recognizes that the health of people is connected to the health of animals and the environment, forms the basis onto which the rest of the strategy is built.

There is now a renewed commitment by all stakeholders to collaborate more effectively to address these strategic priorities. Acknowledging all the efforts in pushing forward the AMR agenda, the WHO Liaison Officer Dr. Aulakh has reiterated WHO’s commitment to provide further necessary support to facilitate the effective implementation of the proposed National Action Plan for AMR by all partners.

________________________________

For more information, please contact:

Doreen Hotive (Mrs), NPO/HPR Officer, Tel: (248) 4224795, GPN 37212,

Email: hotived [at] who.int
Below:

01. Participants at the opening of the workshop

02. Minister of Health opening remarks