Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to support the safe management of health and hygiene services in developing nations to help tackle antimicrobial resistance.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major global health threat, and tackling it is a UK priority. DFID, alongside the Department of Health and Social Care, provides support to developing countries' health and hygiene services, which also supports tackling antimicrobial resistance.

DFID support includes work to prevent infection and, in turn, reduce the need for antimicrobials. For example, through DFID’s support to GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, the UK will help immunise 300 million children between 2016 and 2020.

DFID also supports the prompt diagnosis and treatment of disease and the development of new drugs and diagnostic tools to treat resistant infection. DFID investment in the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria contributed towards treating 102,000 people for drug-resistant tuberculosis in 2017. The Department of Health and Social Care’s £265 million Fleming Fund also supports low and middle-income countries to improve surveillance and laboratory capacity for addressing AMR.

Since 2015 DFID has also supported 40 million people to gain access to clean water and sanitation, and DFID also supports water, sanitation and hygiene in healthcare facilities, both of which are important for preventing infection.