A plaque on the side of the Saint Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, London, UK, commemorates the discovery of penicillin, the first antibiotic, in 1928. Fungal spores, blown by the wind, landed on Sir Alexander Fleming's Petri dishes killing the bacteria he was growing leading to a revolution in medicine.
Phase II of Fleming Fund launches in Indonesia
The UK aid Fleming Fund Country Grant to Indonesia (FFCGI) enters its second phase of support to Indonesia, providing technical assistance to the country’s government in addressing the threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) - with a new investment of GBP 5.8 million/IDR 120 billion from 2024-2026.
The Fleming Fund grant will support ongoing surveillance across human and animal health sectors, including improving surveillance design and implementation, investment in laboratory equipment and whole genome sequencing, data analytics, and use. With the rise of drug-resistant infections posing a significant challenge to global health and the health of the Indonesian people, it is critical to safeguard the effectiveness of antimicrobial treatments.
Image shows: (left to right) South East Asia Fleming Fund Regional Coordinator Dr Neha Gulati; The British Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor-Leste Dominic Jermey; The Deputy Minister of the Republic of Indonesia Prof Dante Saksono Herbuwono; and the Fleming Fund Country Grant to Indonesia Team Leader Dr Tom Weaver.
Since 2020, the FFCGI has been working with the Government of Indonesia to advance AMR containment through improved governance across multiple ministries and to strengthen surveillance systems, including laboratory capacity across the country. Building on the success of the first phase, the FFCGI will continue working with the Government and over 35 national laboratories.
I am inspired by the impact of the Fleming Fund in Indonesia so far, bringing together all sectors to constrain the antibiotic emergency. I welcome this exciting next stage in the partnership between the UK’s Fleming Fund and the Government of Indonesia to continue strengthening AMR surveillance to inform life-saving actions.
Professor Dame Sally Davies, UK Special Envoy for AMR
AMR poses a critical risk to global public health, estimated to be directly responsible for 1.27 million global deaths in 2019. It also hits our economies - World Bank simulations have found that AMR could cause economic losses of more than $1 trillion annually. Our support to the Government of Indonesia through the Fleming Fund country grant will help strengthen surveillance system and build capacity across human, animal, and environmental health. Alongside the Fleming Fund, the UK has pledged up to £85 million to help improve access to essential oral antimicrobial drugs, strengthen surveillance systems, and establish a global independent science panel for AMR. As we mark the 75th anniversary of UK – Indonesia diplomatic relations this year, we look forward to strengthening our partnership with Indonesia by helping to develop an advanced health system, and to accelerate digital health innovation, contributing, reducing preventable death, and improving life expectancy.
British Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor-Leste Dominic Jermey
Image shows: The British Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor-Leste Dominic Jermey; the Deputy Minister of the Republic of Indonesia Prof Dante Saksono Herbuwono; the Fleming Fund Country Grant to Indonesia Team Leader Dr Tom Weaver; and South East Asia Fleming Fund Regional Coordinator Dr Neha Gulati.
The Fleming Fund has helped strengthen the Government’s AMR information management and surveillance systems, biorepository capacity and One Health AMR and AMU surveillance in human, animal, and aquaculture health, and a new national AMR information system is now ready to be customised, installed, and used on Government of Indonesia servers. “The Fleming Fund grant has propelled Indonesian scientists in sequencing bacterial genomes from Indonesians, chickens, aquatic production animals, and waterways so that we can better understand the mechanisms of resistance and the spread of resistant bacteria. This is a significant contribution to the important work of containing AMR by understanding the problem and improving stewardship, and we look forward to working closely with the FFCGI team in the second phase
Deputy Minister of Health of the Republic of Indonesia Prof. Dr. Dante Saksono Harbuwono
Image shows: The Indonesia launch opening workshop, with representatives of multiple Indonesian government ministries, Fleming Fund partners, and the Embassy team.
With support from the UK’s Fleming Fund, we have worked closely with the Ministries of Health, Agriculture, and Marine Affairs & Fisheries to ensure Indonesia’s policy and practices in AMR containment help save lives. “We have invested in renovation, equipment, and training for 4 National Reference Laboratories, equipping 21 laboratories, training over 2,000 leaders and technical experts, and providing External Quality Assessments and Quality Management Systems support for 18 laboratories. “The Fleming Fund has worked directly with 11 Indonesian hospitals, 2 public health national reference laboratories, 7 animal health labs, and numerous clinicians, pharmacists, veterinarians, and animal producers across Indonesia to understand how antibiotics are being used and how we can better manage these precious resources.”
FFCGI’s Grant Team Leader from DAI, Dr Tom Weaver
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