A Workshop Provides the Basis for Creating a Surveillance Network on Antimicrobial Resistance in Morocco

In collaboration with ISGlobal, the National School of Public Health of Morocco organized the workshop "Antimicrobial Resistance: a global threat to public health", with the aim of improving the knowledge on the appearance of resistant strains and laying the foundation for the creation of a surveillance network on antimicrobial resistance in Morocco. The workshop took place on the 1st and 2nd of October in Rabat and is part of the Project "Clinical and public health research to improve maternal, newborn health and control sexually transmitted infections", funded under the European FP7 program

The workshop was attended by some 25 participants, including epidemiologists and microbiologists from the main Moroccan hospitals and representatives of the country's Ministry of Health. A multi-disciplinary panel composed of antimicrobial experts such ad Dr. Jordi Vila, director of the Antibiotic Resistance Initiative at ISGlobal and Dr. José Miguel Cisneros, from the Biomedical Institute of Sevilla, addressed four main areas: Epidemiology of bacterial resistance, Laboratory perspectives, National Initiatives, and Collaborative research. At the end of the workshop, the experts reviewed the available tools and strategies to address the problem in each country and identified issues that require further generation of scientific knowledge.  

"The data on antimicrobial resistance are alarming" says Dr. Mohammed Youbi, from the Moroccan Ministry of Health, and adds "The ministry would certainly benefit from a surveillance network to take informed decisions". According to Professor Mohammed Akrim, with "the technical capacity and willingness of the different professionals, the Ministry's leadership and the support of the Spanish experts", such network can become a reality. It is a feeling shared by Dr. Miguel Lanaspa, coordinator of the Morocco platform at ISGlobal, who concludes "it has been a fruitful experience thanks to the high level of awareness of the problem posed by microbial resistance and the will to collaborate, and represents a significant boost towards the creation of a Moroccan surveillance network on antimicrobial resistance".