Representatives from 12 African countries came together to attended a two-day regional summit, on the responsible and appropriate use of antimicrobials, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
The World Health Organisation (WHO) organised the summit in the context of the recent African Union Summit, which encouraged greater cooperation and resource mobilisation for health system strengthening and pandemic preparedness on the continent.
In her welcoming speech, Acting Representative of WHO-Ethiopia Country Office, Nonhlanhla Dlamini said, “Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is a significant threat to global public health. The global and regional burden is alarming. Sub-Saharan African countries bear the heaviest burden of resistant bacterial infections, with the highest AMR-associated death rates, at 99 deaths per 100,000 population.”
Ethiopia is among the first countries to have a national strategic document on AMR and the implementation of Antimicrobial Stewardship (AMS).
WHO believes effective implementation of Antimicrobial Stewardship is one of the critical, sustainable, and cost-effective strategies to control AMR. The AMR-Multi-partner trust fund has catalysed the collaboration and coordination between WHO and other development partners for AMS strengthening.
Financial support from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has also helped scale up the implementation of antimicrobial stewardship from a few health facilities to around 100 across Ethiopia.
“Ethiopia’s government is fully committed to preventing AMR. Through its National Action Plan on the Prevention and Control of AMR, the government of Ethiopia is executing coordinated activities at all levels, and the Ethiopian Ministries of Health, Agriculture, and Environment are working in close collaboration with WHO and other partners to ensure responsible and appropriate use of antimicrobials,” said Ethiopian State Minister of Health, Dereje Duguma.
