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LEGN participated in the Joint FAO/ICARS Regional Workshop, Leaving no one behind in AMR research, policy and practice: integrating gender and equity in AMR One Health solutions. Convened under the FAO–WHO–WOAH Regional Tripartite AMR Project and in collaboration with the International Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance Solutions (ICARS), the workshop gathered over 100 participants from 24 countries, including experts on One Health, AMR, gender and inclusion, and community-based management. Over three days, participants exchanged practice-based insights on incorporating gender and equity throughout AMR policies and strategies through a One Health lens.

LEGN stressed that legislation can translate shared goals—equitable access, prudent antimicrobial use, robust surveillance, and responsible innovation—into durable, enforceable frameworks that sustain results beyond project cycles. It also explained how law can consolidate inclusive AMR responses under a One Health approach by: (i) enabling multi-stakeholder collaboration across human, animal, plant and environmental health through clear mandates, accountability mechanisms, and inclusive governance; (ii) supporting normative integration so that legal instruments make coherent connections across sectors; (iii) advancing antimicrobial stewardship and prudent-use rules that prioritise facilitation of compliance; and (iv) ensuring meaningful participation and inclusion through rights-based approaches that leave no one behind.

Why this matters in Asia and the Pacific

AMR not only threatens public health, food safety and security, but will also have consequences on livelihoods across agri-food systems. The Tripartite partners—FAO, WHO and WOAH—have worked together to ensure a coherent, One Health approach that recognizes the interconnections between human, animal and environmental health. The regional project (2022–2025), funded by the European Union, focuses on  China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam, with Japan and the Republic of Korea as partners. Its objectives include supporting One Health AMR National Action Plans, strengthening surveillance and monitoring, stimulating private-sector participation, and promoting research and innovation, with pandemic preparedness and strengthening of legal frameworks as a cross-cutting consideration.

The workshop’s focus on gender and equity aligns closely with one of the project’s goals, i.e. to  produce national AMR actions plans that are supplemented by socio-economic and gender analyses. Embedding these factors early—within legislation, regulation and implementation guidance—helps ensure that AMR measures are both effective and fair, particularly for communities most affected by antimicrobial access constraints, disease burdens or livelihood risks.

Key takeaways

• Policy coherence requires law. Cross-sector AMR strategies will benefit from legal instruments that align standards, clarify responsibilities and enable data sharing—core to effective One Health responses.
• Equity improves impact. Gender-responsive and inclusive rules make AMR interventions more targeted, legitimate and sustainable.
• Partnerships accelerate progress. Collaboration across governments, communities, academia, and the private sector—central to the Regional Tripartite AMR Project—creates new opportunities to identify and address needs relevant to specific segments of the population, including small producers, Indigenous Peoples and women.