Health Minister Yolanda Awel Deng. (UNGA)

South Sudan Minister of Health Yolanda Awel Deng told a UN session that drug resistance against bacterial diseases known as Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is a public health security threat that requires urgent actions in the country.

Awel made the remarks on Thursday while addressing the UN General Assembly’s High-Level Meeting on Amtimicrobial Resistance in New York, USA.

AMR is a resistance of an infection to respond to medicines, which, according to the UN data, kills 1.3 million people a year across the world.

The UN indicates that AMR presents a rising global threat to human, animal, and plant health, as well as food security, and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Minister Awel warned of a growing burden of drug-resistant infections to public health in South Sudan.

“In the Republic of South Sudan, Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of greatest public health security threat,” she said, addressing a gathering of global health officials.

During the meeting, the “Political Declaration of the High-level Meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance” was approved and will be submitted to the General Assembly for adoption at a later date.

The minister added that the emergence and spread of AMR is threatening the advances made in public health, the economy, and progress towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the country.

Awel said more investment and political will are needed in various governments to implement actions against the public health issue.

She emphasized the need to strengthen the knowledge and evidence based through surveillance and research among strategic actions to combat drug-resistant infections in the country.

“Limited data on the burden of AMR in South Sudan requires urgent action to strengthen the knowledge and evidence based through surveillance and research among strategic actions to combat the growing burden of drug-resistant infections.”

Minister Awel further called upon government to improve political will and invest more on this health issue which is rapidly spreading in the country.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a growing global crisis that threatens progress in healthcare, agriculture, and sustainable development, according to Africa Center for Diseases Control (Africa CDC).

In Africa, AMR-related infections impact varies, causing thousands of annual deaths and threatening public health. It is estimated that thousands of people die annually in Africa due to AMR-related infections, with 27.3 deaths per 100,000 cases attributed to AMR.

The Africa CDC says it is implementing a strategy to support African Union Member States in mitigating the detrimental effects of drug-resistant pathogens.

South Sudan has developed an AMR National Action Plan which aims to guide national leaders, policymakers, and stakeholders to allocate resources, strengthen healthcare systems, implement regulations, and foster international cooperation in the fight against AMR.