Following the success of the first EU-JAMRAI project, 120 organisations from 30 countries are approaching the fight against antimicrobial resistance, strengthening Europe's response to the urgent public health crisis.
On 13 February 2024, the European Commission, policy makers and organisations from 30 countries launch a second joint action in Paris to combat antimicrobial resistance and healthcare-associated infections (EU-JAMRAI 2). This joint project, coordinated by Inserm (National Institute for Health and Medical Research), France, supported by the French Ministry of Health, focuses on a more effective fight against antimicrobial resistance: a serious threat to public health that is responsible for more than 35,000 deaths per year in the European Union (EU)/European Economic Area (EEA) and 1.3 million deaths worldwide.
Following the success of the EU-JAMRAI 1 project, which ran from 2017 to 2021, this most recent project promotes an ambitious work programme of "One Health" which brings together EU Member States together with Iceland, Norway and Ukraine.
Didier Samuel, CEO of Inserm, said: The long-term implementation of a co-ordinated approach, one health, remains a priority in the coming years, is also a priority for the future. No state is able to act alone against antimicrobial resistance. Cooperation is no longer an option: it is a condition for success in the global fight against antimicrobial resistance. – EU-JAMRAI 2 aims to implement specific measures to monitor, prevent and effectively combat antimicrobial resistance in all areas of human health, animal health and the environment, thus enabling participating countries to strengthen their national action plans. The aim is to reduce the risk of exposure of European citizens to antimicrobial resistant bacteria. This includes promoting integrated surveillance and strengthening the prevention of infections through the -single health approach and improving the care of patients with bacterial infections, for example by ensuring access to effective and adequate antibiotic treatment.
The EU-JAMRAI 2 programme is co-financed by the partners involved and the EU4Health programme with a total budget of €62.5 million, of which €50 million from the European Commission. This level of funding highlights the priority the European Union attaches to combating antimicrobial resistance.
More than 120 partners from 30 countries will actively participate in this Joint Action, with the support of around 40 stakeholders. European organisations such as the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, the European Food Safety Authority and international organisations such as WHO, WOAH, OECD, UNEP and FAO will enrich the debate on their expertise and ensure coherence of joint action with existing national initiatives. In addition, human and animal health experts as well as patient representatives are an integral part of this Joint Action. The Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic is involved in this project with the aim to actively approach the development of future policies and measures to combat AMR. For this purpose, a national expert will be nominated in each country as a contact person between the EU and JAMI. Slovakia will actively participate in work packages 6 and 10, focusing on the issue of antimicrobial surveillance in people and raising awareness of AMR issues with a focus on experts and laymen.