About the Fleming Fund
We bring evidence and people together to encourage action against drug resistance for a healthier world by supporting low- and middle-income countries to generate, share and use antimicrobial resistance data.
The Fleming Fund is a UK aid programme supporting up to 25 countries across Africa and Asia to tackle antimicrobial resistance. The Fund is managed by the Department of Health and Social Care and invests in strengthening surveillance systems through a portfolio of country and regional grants, global projects and fellowship schemes.
The UK Government established the programme in 2015 in response to the UK AMR Review and the WHO Global Action Plan on AMR, which called for funding to improve AMR surveillance, public awareness and responsible drug use. The programme focuses on low- and middle-income (LMIC) countries because they are expected to bear the heaviest consequences of the spread of AMR. The UK AMR Review estimated that by 2050, up to 90% of all deaths related to AMR will come from Africa and Asia.
The Fleming Fund is named after Sir Alexander Fleming, the scientist who discovered penicillin and contributed to the development of the world’s first antibiotic drug.
Our Aims
- We build partnerships across sectors, governments and organisations
- We equip countries to collect and use data on drug resistance
- We encourage clinicians and farmers to use antibiotics better
- We encourage governments to invest in tackling antimicrobial resistance for a sustainable future
- We encourage policy makers to make AMR a policy priority
Find our more about more about how we accomplish our aims by visiting our activities page.
Our Values
Country Ownership
We are committed to working closely with national governments to ensure that all programming contributes to national health system strengthening and prioritises investment in public sector laboratories and surveillance systems. Our grants support implementation of National Action Plans for AMR, which means we support delivery of national government’s existing plans to tackle AMR- we don’t create new priorities. Through ongoing collaboration with national governments, we help establish cross-sectoral, country-led AMR governance structures ensuring the ultimate owners of our investments are national governments.
Sustainability
The Fleming Fund’s investments are designed with a view to long-term sustainability. We consider countries’ resources, capacity, motivations and existing AMR activities from the start, ensuring country ownership by investing in National Action Plans and considering affordability and exit strategies from the start of programme design. We aim is to support public health systems, through our grants and capacity building programmes, so that future AMR work is sustained through national government budgets.
Alignment
We ensure our funding aligns with key global frameworks, including the World Health Organization's Global Action Plan on AMR, and doesn’t duplicate other donors’ efforts. We ensure investments are aligned at a country level by working closely with national governments to fund surveillance elements of National Action Plans and supporting coordination through national AMR governance structures.
One Health
Because bacteria spread freely in the environment, we promote a multi-disciplinary response to tackling AMR that includes human health, animal health, food production and environment. By investing in both human and animal health laboratories and promoting data sharing, analysis and even joint action between human, animal, agriculture and environment government ministries, we support national One Health AMR surveillance systems.
Gender and Equity
The Fleming Fund seeks to reduce the impact of AMR on marginalised groups. We do this by supporting the development of a comprehensive understanding of AMR/U/C amongst marginalised individuals/groups, including by disaggregating samples by gender; advocating for policy change that takes into account the specific impacts on marginalised individuals/groups; and ensuring that all Fleming Fund activities do no harm, and actively support inclusion and prevent discrimination.