In a busy neighborhood in the Philippines, a local vaccination drive tells a much bigger story. It shows how something as simple as rolling up a sleeve can help push back against antimicrobial resistance (AMR)—a silent, fast-growing health threat that disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries.

In late 2025, around 150 senior citizens in the city of Valenzuela received routine adult vaccines. The activity and corresponding outreach work were supported by IVI Europe Regional Office (IERO), aimed at widening community awareness of AMR. 

While the World Health Organization describes AMR as one of the most serious global health challenges of the 21st century, its impact is even more critical within low- and middle-income countries like the Philippines. 

That’s because increasing levels of drug-resistant infections—alongside heavy antibiotic use and gaps in preventive care—continue to strain healthcare systems, driving up illness, deaths, and costs. It is estimated that routine vaccination, in combination with infection, prevention and control as well as water, sanitation, and hygiene measures, can help significantly lower the AMR burden.  

A simple message for participants in Valenzuela 

The vaccination drive was led by Ateneo de Manila University and is part of an ongoing, country-level initiative in collaboration with IQVIA, jointly funded by IERO and the International Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance Solutions (ICARS). 

The message shared with participants was simple. “We know that vaccines can prevent infections. If we can prevent infections, we can reduce the use of antibiotics, thus reducing the risk of antimicrobial resistance,” said Dr. Perci Lao from the ASMPH Center for Research and Innovation (ACRI), the university’s research unit.

A related roundtable brought together physician societies and city health officers from across Metro Manila to discuss integrating vaccination strategies into AMR stewardship frameworks, addressing issues ranging from prescription regulation to systemic supply challenges. 

For IERO, these two activities are positioned under the wider Mind the Gap project. “Since 2023, Mind the Gap has expanded its work to highlight vaccination as a key strategy for preventing and mitigating AMR by generating new evidence on the funding landscape and sharing insights at leading global forums,” says Laura Plant, Project Lead. 

“In collaboration with ICARS, we launched a competitive request-for-proposals process that selected Ateneo de Manila University as the lead organization for its strong focus on equity, evidence generation, and actionable solutions to address critical gaps in vaccines and AMR in the Philippines.” 

Mapping the global funding landscape for vaccines and AMR 

In March 2025, Mind The Gap achieved a landmark output in the publication of “Vaccines and AMR: An analysis of the funding landscape for human bacterial vaccines in low- and middle-income countries.” Based on analysis of US$4.5 billion in publicly available funding data, the paper represents the most comprehensive overview to date of investments in bacterial vaccine research and development for LMICs.

“According to our study, the Philippines has received around US$3 million in external AMR‑related vaccine funding, just 0.4% of total funding allocated to LMICs, since 2017. It has been valuable to support work in the Philippines, a country already taking meaningful steps to bring the vaccination and AMR agendas closer together,” says Catherine Fleck-Vidal, Associate Researcher at IERO.

The paper also noted that philanthropic and intermediary organizations, especially product development partnerships, play a key role in channeling resources to LMICs.

The Valenzuela vaccination drive and associated outreach and advocacy activities are examples of such community-based interventions in countries like the Philippines, where vaccines play a vital role in mitigating AMR and closing persistent global health gaps. 

By: Christine Demsteader 

Published: 12 February 2026