PMAC 2018 – Global efforts towards a World Safe from Threats due to Emerging Infectious Diseases

Zoonotic and AMR-related diseases accounted for more than 95% of all emerging infectious diseases reported during the second half of the 20th century. In this century, the emergence of SARS, pandemic influenza, MERS, and the spread of Ebola and Zika reflect the world’s increasing vulnerability to novel zoonotic threats. The simultaneous emergence of pathogens resistant to antibiotic therapies raises the prospect of a “post-antibiotic” world.

While the drivers underlying the emergence of zoonotic and antibiotic-resistant diseases are complex, human behaviors and their impact on animal populations and the environment are understood to be central to the emergence of both disease threats. There is an urgent need to bring a comprehensive One Health risk mitigation approach to address zoonotic and AMR-related diseases that addresses the direct consequences of animal-human interactions and contributory pressures related to environmental and climate changes. The Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) and related One Health movement provide important frameworks for mobilizing international action.

The Prince Mahidol Award Conference (PMAC) 2018 provided an important setting for fostering policy and strategic action by engaging about 1,200 multi-sectoral experts coming from 85 countries. This was also an opportunity for experts in zoonosis and AMR, as well as climate change and related environmental fields from the public and private sectors, international organizations, foundations, academia and non-governmental organizations, as well as critical players in Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), to work together.

The Bangkok Statement calls for actions at the global level that:

·     Are built on a bold vision that embraces not only a renewed commitment to address the threats posed by emerging infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance, but is also fully aligned with and reinforcing of the commitments made in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including to leave no one behind, and the UN Political Declaration on AMR in 2016. 

·     Renew efforts to craft policies and regulatory frameworks to address more directly the multi-sectoral responses to emerging infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance.  

·     Reach across the public and private sectors and civil society to fully harness their collective power for change, and invests in research to develop new, affordable, available and more effective countermeasures and health technologies to prevent, diagnose, treat and minimize the impact of these threats, ensuring a full social return on public investments, safeguarding human security for everyone, especially vulnerable populations.

Invest in and promote “whole of society” approaches to ensure preparedness strategies and capacities are in place to detect, respond to and mitigate the effects of emergent health threats across the entirety of society by establishing and strengthening relationships between health and non-health sectors, establishing multi-sectoral policies and practices for effective preparedness and response to health emergencies, and strategically utilizing technical and financial resources to support systems strengthening and social resilience./.