FAO Conference resolutions

Resolution

4/2015

Antimicrobial Resistance

THE CONFERENCE

Having considered

the Secretariat ’s Status Report on Antimicrobial Resistance

C 2015/28 Rev.1

in food, agriculture

Includes the growing of crops and the rearing of terrestrial and aquatic animals.

and the environment;

Recalling

the Rome Declaration on Nutrition 2014 and accompanying Framework for Action and also recalling the request by the

Council

at its Hundred and Fiftieth Session to the Secretariat;

Recognizing

the role of FAO as the lead intergovernmental agency with the mandate to improve agriculture, forestry, fisheries and management of natural resources and to achieve global food security and nutrition;

Noting

also the relevant and globally agreed FAO /

WHO

Codex Alimentarius Commission

Codex Guidelines on Risk Analysis of Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance - CAC/GL 77- 2011 and Code of Practice to Minimize and Contain Antimicrobial Resistance - CAC/RCP 61-2005

guidance and Codes, as well as the relevant agreed

OIE

standards, to address antimicrobial resistance;

Aware

that access to effective antimicrobial agents constitutes a prerequisite for productive and sustainable agriculture, particularly animal husbandry and aquaculture and safe food, on which countless livelihoods depend throughout the world, but that hard-won gains in animal and human health and development are at risk due to increasing resistance to antimicrobials;

Aware

that the health and economic consequences of antimicrobial resistance constitute a heavy and growing burden on high-, middle- and low-income countries, requiring urgent action at national, regional and global levels, particularly in view of the limited development of new antimicrobial agents;

Recognizing

that there is need for a coherent, comprehensive, integrated and balanced approach at global, regional and national levels in a ‘One Health’ approach and beyond, involving different actors and sectors such as human and veterinary medicine, agriculture, food safety, environment and consumers;

Recognizing

that antimicrobial resistance involves a wide range of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites, but that the development of resistance to antibiotics is of particular urgency and most in need of immediate attention;

Emphasizing

the importance of policy recommendations being based on sound scientific evidence and risk analysis principles;

Noting

the evidence of the transmission and spread of antimicrobial resistance between animals, humans, in the food chain and the environment;

Welcoming

the tripartite collaboration on antimicrobial resistance among FAO, the

World Health Organization (WHO)

, including Codex Alimentarius, and the

World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE)

, as well as other international collaboration;

Noting

the adoption by the Sixty-seventh

World Health Assembly

of a resolution on antimicrobial resistance,

WHA67.25, 24 May 2014

including its request to the

WHO

Director-General

to strengthen the tripartite collaboration among FAO,

OIE

and

WHO

for combating antimicrobial resistance in the spirit of the ‘One Health’ approach;

Welcoming

the adoption by the Sixty-eighth World Health Assembly of the Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance

A68/20; A68/20 Corr.1, 21 May 2015

, into which FAO provided input, and noting the reports and guidance to and by the

Executive Board of WHO

at its Hundred and Thirty‑sixth Session;

Aware

that the Global Action Plan reinforces the need for collaboration on antimicrobial resistance among FAO,

OIE

and

WHO

and other intergovernmental organizations, partners and stakeholders and calls upon FAO to support the implementation of antimicrobial resistance prevention and control measures in food and agriculture;

Noting

the Secretariat ’s report to the

Council

at its Hundred and Fifty‑first Session, set out in document C 2015/28 Rev.1 and the deliberations of the Council ;

Strongly

supporting

the ongoing work by the Secretariat, in collaboration with Members and others, to assess the evidence of antimicrobial resistance in food and agriculture systems, identify knowledge gaps, and provide recommendations to Members for effectively combatting antimicrobial resistance;

Urges

Members to:

increase political awareness, engagement and leadership to ensure continued access to antimicrobial drugs through the prudent and responsible use of antimicrobials in agriculture, as expressed in the Codex Code of Practice to Minimize and Contain Antimicrobial Resistance

WHO - Critically important antimicrobials for human medicine (3rd Revision) http://www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/antimicrobials-third/en/

, in particular those on the

OIE

and

WHO

lists of Critically Important Antimicrobials

OIE List of Antimicrobials of Veterinary Importance http://www.oie.int/doc/ged/D9840.PDF

of veterinary and human health importance;

strengthen national monitoring of antimicrobial resistance and the use of antimicrobials in agriculture, regulation of their prescription and use and compliance with those regulations in cooperation with

OIE

WHO

and FAO in accordance with OIE and Codex standards;

facilitate efforts to strengthen analysis and sharing of international scientific evidence for development, transmission and control of antimicrobial resistance in food, agriculture and the environment, including technology transfer;

take actions to continue the development of sus tainable food production systems taking into consideration their social, economic and environmental dimensions, in order to reduce the risk of diseases, prevent the unnecessary use of antimicrobials, including the phasing out of antimicrobials as growth promoters (veterinary antimicrobial drugs which belong to or are able to cause cross resistance to classes of antimicrobial agents used - or submitted for approval - in humans and animals in the absence of a risk analysis) and promote good animal husbandry management, biosecurity and biosafety;

take urgent action at regional, national and local levels to mitigate risks posed by inappropriate antimicrobial usage and antimicrobial resistance in food, agriculture and the environment;

develop or strengthen national plans, strategies and international collaboration for the surveillance, monitoring and containment of antimicrobial resistance in food, agriculture and the environment, in close coordination with related plans for human health;

mobilize human and financial resources, at national, regional and international level, in order to implement plans and strategies to strengthen surveillance and to minimize development and transmission of antimicrobial resistance in food, agriculture and the environment;

improve among all relevant stakeholders awareness of:

the risks posed by antimicrobial resistance to public health, as well as the potential negative impacts on food and agriculture;

ii)

the need for responsible use of antimicrobial drugs in agriculture; and

iii)

good animal husbandry, plant production, health, biosecurity and biosafety, management and hygiene practices;

support developing countries to develop programmes and systems for detection, surveillance and monitoring of antimicrobial use and antimicrobial resistance and to follow-up on their related policies established to achieve progressive management of antimicrobial resistance risks in food, agriculture and the environment;

encourage and support research and development to combat antimicrobial resistance and development of new classes of antimicrobial agents and alternative therapies and diagnostics and promote responsible use of antimicrobials in agriculture;

recognize the importance of the development of antimicrobial usage and resistance surveillance; and

improve information sharing and awareness raising amongst all stakeholders.

Requests

the Organization to:

actively support and provide capacity building as appropriate, in collaboration with other relevant partners, sustainable production systems taking into account the social, economic and environmental dimensions that prevent diseases through good animal (aquatic and terrestrial) husbandry management and practices, as well as good plant production management and practices, as an important means to combat antimicrobial resistance;

ensure that all relevant parts of the Organization, at headquarters, regional and country levels, are actively engaged and coordinated in promoting work on combatting antimicrobial resistance, within the parameters of the FAO Strategic Objectives;

help strengthen the tripartite collaboration between FAO,

OIE

and

WHO

for combatting antimicrobial resistance in the spirit of the ‘One Health’ approach and to maximize synergies with OIE in animal health;

support efforts to explore with the

United Nations Secretary-General

options for a high-level initiative, including a high-level meeting, to increase political awareness, engagement and leadership on antimicrobial resistance;

support implementation of the Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance, which seeks to address the need to ensure that all countries, especially low- and middle-income countries, have the capacity to combat antimicrobial resistance and which takes into account existing action plans and all available evidence and best practices; and

keep Members regularly apprised of the Secretariat’s work in this area, through reports to the

Committee on Agriculture

(Adopted on

13 June 2015

)

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