Egyptian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health and Population Khaled Abdel Ghaffar on Monday affirmed political leadership’s keenness on ensuring healthy lives for all people and supporting efforts meant to control infection and provide premium quality healthcare services.
The minister was addressing the 2nd national conference on infection control and antimicrobial resistance, which is organized in collaboration with Sanofi and Eva Pharma companies to review progress achieved in the file of antimicrobial resistance and share views on infection control practices.
Abdel Ghaffar commended efforts of the preventive medicine sector at the Health Ministry and its partners in achieving this milestone in the health system.
The antimicrobial resistance is one of the most dangerous health challenges facing the world, due to its serious repercussions on public health, health systems, and the global economy, the minister said.
According to the latest reports by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the antimicrobial resistance is a silent threat that could lead to the death of about 10 million people annually by 2050, if urgent action is not taken to combat it, the minister added.
Egypt is among the first countries to take proactive steps in this regard, by launching the National Action Plan for Antimicrobial Resistance in 2018, Abdel Ghaffar said.
Launched in May 2023, a plan on antimicrobial resistance was implemented in at least one hospital in each governorate, with the inclusion of 80 hospitals by 2025, the minister said.
Thanks to the plan, the average compliance rate with infection control measures in hospitals nationwide has reached 64.2 percent, Abdel Ghaffar added.
