By Alufisha Fischer
World Health Organisation (WHO) has reiterated that antibiotics should be used responsibly and only when prescribed, warning that misuse continues to accelerate the global threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
The reminder comes as the world today begins World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week 2025, an annual campaign aimed at promoting safer use of medicines that treat infections.
The organisation stressed that taking antibiotics unnecessarily or incorrectly fuels the development of resistant bacteria, making infections increasingly difficult to treat and increasing the risk of severe side effects.
The renewed call for caution follows alarming findings from the WHO Global Antibiotic Resistance Surveillance Report 2025, which highlights rising levels of AMR across Africa.
Locally, Antimicrobial resistance awareness was done in February this year, recognized as a public health risk that needs to be given priority.
AMR occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi or parasites stop responding to medicines designed to kill them, making common infections harder and more expensive to treat.
