Forum on Living land, food and antimicrobial resistance launched in Guatemala City

2024-10-24

ReAct Latin America organized a meeting on 16 October that brought together experts from Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador and Guatemala on the occasion of World Food Day, to engage the medical, veterinary, agricultural, community, nursing and education sectors in dialogue about bacterial resistance to antibiotics under the One Health approach.

The meeting recognized that the current socio-ecological crisis facing the world requires coordinated and intersectoral actions that raise awareness among decision-makers about the role of communities and their efforts to address this problem.

Opening of the event

The event was inaugurated by health authorities, Mariano Gálvez University officials and representatives from ReAct Latin America.

“It is increasingly clear that human health, animal health, food safety and the environment are intrinsically connected. This reality also directly affects antimicrobial resistance – AMR – a global threat that requires integrated solutions. This leads us to adopt with greater urgency the “one health” approach, with integration of measures across all sectors”

said Guatemala’s Deputy Minister of Primary Health Care, Dr. Donato Camey

The event was attended by students, professionals and experts from the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (MSPAS), the Mariano Gálvez, Del Valle and San Carlos universities of Guatemala, and professionals in human, animal, agricultural and environmental health.

Presentations highlighting the intersection of AMR, culture and environmental impact

The meeting had various presentations, which addressed topics such as the role of the Mayan worldview in the prevention, detection and response to zoonotic diseases, community empowerment strategies in addressing AMR; social and environmental impact of the inappropriate use of antibiotics in the production of food of animal origin; the soil microbiome and the animal microbiome  as well as the relation between antimicrobial resistance and art.

100 medical students

100 medical students from the Mariano Gálvez University, which hosted the meeting, have completed the virtual training course “Alforja Educativa School Health and the Microbial World: to care for planetary health” developed by ReAct Latin America. In 2024, the course was integrated into the “Primary Health Care” chair taught by Dr. Luis Pablo Méndez and Dr. Gilly Morales, from the Mariano Gálvez University. It covered topics such as One Health, Child to Child Methodology, the microbial world, bacterial resistance to antibiotics, and the interrelations with animal health and agriculture. In the context of the event, 35 students received their certificate.

One student says:

“The course was very important for me, as I was able to reflect on aspects that I had not previously considered regarding health and the problems we are going to encounter. In addition, I now believe that I have more tools for working with children and the community,”