FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

Series: Challenges and opportunities of the One Health approach, from the agri-food system

Virtual Event, 21/11/2024

Live broadcast
About the webinar

The webinar: Antimicrobial Resistance: Educate. Promote. Act Now, organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), will be held as part of Global Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week. This event calls on the international community to educate relevant sectors about AMR, promote bold commitments and undertake concrete actions to prevent and address this threat. This event seeks to strengthen awareness and contribute to the sustainable use of antimicrobials in agrifood chains.

The following will be present:

  • Alicia Gallardo, Fisheries Specialist
  • Germán Vásquez, Specialist in Antimicrobial Resistance
  • María de los Ángeles Gatica, Regional Antimicrobial Resistance Coordinator
  • Nicolás Winter, Moderator, Animal Health Specialist.
About the series

FAO promotes the application of the "One Health" approach as part of the transformation of the agrifood system in favor of the health of people, animals, plants and the environment. This translates into a variety of actors and work related to sustainable agriculture, animal, plant, forest and aquaculture health, food safety, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), nutrition and livelihoods.

Ensuring the "One Health" approach is essential to make progress in predicting, preventing, detecting and responding to diseases that spread between animals and humans, including Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) and food safety, along with managing environmental determinants of risks to human and animal health, within a set of linked challenges in disease causation. The adoption of the "One Health" approach is also fundamental to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

During the 2024-2025 biennium, a series of webinars will be held to promote this integrative approach to a systemic approach to the health of people, animals, plants and the environment.

Key messages
  • Antimicrobials are essential for treating diseases and protecting human and animal health.
  • Their improper use in livestock, aquaculture, and agriculture increases the risk of antimicrobial resistance.
  • In 2019, antimicrobial resistance was responsible for 5 million deaths, including 1.3 million direct deaths.
  • Between 2015 and 2017, 118 countries reported data on antimicrobial use in animals, compared with 89 countries in 2015.
  • Twenty-seven different classes of antimicrobials are used in animals.
  • The total global animal health market in 2011 amounted to about USD 22 billion (OECD).
  • Only 42 countries have a system in place to collect data on antimicrobial use in livestock (OIE).
Watch other events of the series
Contact

Nicolas Winter

Animal Health Specialist

FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

Javiera Suarez

Better Production Specialist

FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean