WHO and Boston University partner to tackle environmental-driven antimicrobial resistance in displaced communities

18 February 2026, Cairo-Egypt - The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean and Boston University, through its Center on Forced Displacement, signed this week a five-year Agreement to advance collaborative work on the intersection of environmental pollution and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) among forcibly displaced populations.

The partnership brings together WHO's technical leadership on AMR and public health with Boston University's interdisciplinary research expertise in displacement, environmental science and community-engaged fieldwork.

Forced displacement exposes millions of people to crowded living conditions, poor sanitation, unsafe water and limited access to quality health services - factors known to accelerate the spread of infectious diseases and drug-resistant pathogens. Yet, the role of environmental pollution in amplifying AMR remains understudied.

"Understanding how environmental stressors shape AMR in displaced communities is essential for effective public health action," said Dr Benedetta Allegranzi, acting Director for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention and Control at the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean. "This collaboration with Boston University brings needed scientific accuracy and community engagement to a critical but overlooked issue."

Recent scientific work from Boston University and other institutions has shown that microplastics and other contaminants can significantly increase AMR levels in laboratory settings. This new collaboration seeks to investigate these interactions in real-world contexts across selected countries in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region.

"Environmental pollution and forced displacement intersect in ways we are only beginning to understand," said Dr Muhammad Zaman, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Global Health and director of the Center on Forced Displacement at Boston University. "This partnership with WHO allows us to bring interdisciplinary research and capacity-building directly to the regions where it is most urgently needed." Under the agreement, WHO and Boston University will work together to:

• Investigate the link between microplastics, environmental impacts and AMR genes in samples collected from migrant and refugee settings.
• Build regional capacity through hands-on training for ministry officials, local students, researchers and public health practitioners.
• Develop inclusive, community-engaged approaches to AMR surveillance tailored to the realities of displaced communities.

The project places strong emphasis on inclusive participation. Field and laboratory activities will incorporate local scholars, frontline workers and community members to ensure research findings are grounded in lived experience. A series of interdisciplinary workshops will help shape more equitable, context-appropriate guidelines for antimicrobial stewardship.

Over the duration of the agreement, the collaboration aims to deliver:

• A validated model for community-engaged environmental AMR surveillance.
• Strengthened regional capacity for environmental AMR monitoring.
• Inclusive regional dialogue on AMR, the environment and displacement.
• Peer-reviewed publications, technical reports and policy recommendations.