As countries embraced the world’s first pandemic accord last month, global health leaders are sounding the alarm over another looming crisis: antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which has been described as a “slow burn pandemic” already responsible for millions of deaths annually and projected to become deadlier than cancer without swift global intervention.
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On 19 May, member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) unanimously adopted the Pandemic Agreement during the 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland. The landmark pact aims to strengthen global pandemic preparedness and response capabilities, fostering international cooperation to prevent future outbreaks from reaching Covid-19 levels of devastation.
WHO director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hailed the accord as a turning point in global health security, while Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong echoed the call for solidarity.
“The Covid-19 pandemic is behind us, but the risk to global health persists, and the need for coordinated action has never been greater. Viruses know no borders. The only way forward is for all of us to tackle global health challenges together,” Wong said.
Yet while the world rightly focuses on preparing for the next viral pandemic, experts warn that AMR already poses a dire, ongoing threat that demands the same level of multilateral urgency.
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The AMR threat [is an] opportunity for collective action. Now is the time for more partners to come together, pool resources, and support high-impact solutions that safeguard health and resilience across Asia and beyond.
Shaun Seow, Chief Executive Officer, Philanthropy Asia Alliance
“Antimicrobial resistance is a mounting crisis that threatens to reverse decades of medical progress, with Asia at the epicentre of this challenge,” said Dawn Chan, chief executive officer of the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP) during the launch of the Targeted Action and Financing the Fight Against Antimicrobial Resistance in Asia report last month at Ecosperity Week 2025.
AMR – which happens when bacteria, viruses, and other parasites evolve to resist treatment – caused an estimated 4.71 million deaths globally in 2021 alone, nearly half of which occurred in Asia. It accounts for roughly 9 per cent of all global deaths annually.
Without action, that figure could rise to 10 million deaths per year by 2050 – surpassing cancer as the leading cause of global mortality, studies show.
Singapore’s director-general of health Kenneth Mak describes AMR as a “slow burn pandemic” requiring the same urgency as fast-moving outbreaks.
“It is only getting worse,” warned WHO assistant director-general Yukiko Nakatani. “We’re not developing new products fast enough to combat the most dangerous and deadly bacteria. Innovation is lacking. Antibacterial agents are simply not reaching the patients who desperately need them, in countries of all income levels.”
By 2050, AMR-related complications could cause 4.4 million deaths annually in Asia alone and cost the region up to US$700 billion – slashing about 1 per cent from the region’s gross domestic product (GDP) and draining already strained healthcare systems. The World Bank estimates that unmitigated AMR could shrink global GDP by as much as 3.8 per cent annually, hitting low- and middle-income countries hardest.
Asia’s vulnerability is compounded by ageing populations, antibiotic overuse, limited healthcare infrastructure and climate change. A study by the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa found that 60 per cent of AMR-related diseases could be aggravated by climate shifts. Two-thirds of AMR-related deaths occur in adults over 65, while one in five fatalities affects children under five.
Despite the escalating crisis, progress in developing new antibiotics remains sluggish due to weak financial incentives. “Even when new products are authorised, access is a serious challenge,” said Nakatani.
While new therapeutics like drugs and vaccines may take a decade or more to develop, immediate interventions can save lives now, according to the joint report by the World Economic Forum, Philanthropy Asia Alliance (PAA), and CIIP. Mobilising the necessary financial resources to reduce AMR-related deaths could save over 100 million lives by 2050, according to the health advocates.
The report found that investing in AMR solutions in Asia-Pacific could prevent US$40 billion in socioeconomic losses and save up to US$15 billion in annual healthcare costs.
Recognising the scale of the threat, world leaders at the 2024 UN High-Level Meeting on AMR pledged to cut bacterial AMR deaths by 10 per cent annually by 2030. A catalytic fund was also launched to help countries implement national action plans and strengthen antimicrobial stewardship.
More recently, philanthropic capital has stepped up to support healthcare efforts for Asia’s most populous countries, with the Gates Foundation recently announcing efforts to raise over US$100 million in catalytic funding for health projects, alongside other private foundations and non-profits including the Hong Kong-based Institute of Philanthropy, Indonesian family-owned Tanoto Foundation and Singapore’s PAA.
As momentum builds behind the WHO’s pandemic accord, advocates say AMR must not be left out of the conversation.
“The AMR threat [is an] opportunity for collective action. Now is the time for more partners to come together, pool resources, and support high-impact solutions that safeguard health and resilience across Asia and beyond,” said Shaun Seow, Chief Executive Officer of PAA.
