Safeguarding health, food, and the environment: Reflecting on FAO’s 2025 initiatives to combat antimicrobial resistance in Zimbabwe

Harare - During the year 2025, Zimbabwe accelerated a whole-of-society response to antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) at the centre of coordination, evidence generation and field implementation under the One Health approach. From launching the AMR National Action Plan 2.0 with financial support from the UK Fleming Fund, to strengthening surveillance and biosecurity in agrifood systems, and convening national science-policy dialogue during World Antimicrobial Awareness Week, the year demonstrated how integrated action can reduce risks for people, animals, plants and ecosystems.

Zimbabwe started the year by launching the second phase of the Fleming Fund country grant alongside the second edition of the Zimbabwe One Health AMR National Action Plan 2.0 (2024–2028). The plan prioritizes awareness, surveillance and research, and reaffirms that combating AMR is essential for food production, rural livelihoods and economic stability, an agenda FAO is advancing in collaboration with the Government and One Health quadripartite partners.

At community level, FAO scaled up Farmer Field Schools (FFS) in the broiler value chain across four districts, equipping farmers with practical skills on husbandry, disease prevention and prudent antimicrobial use. The FFS have an inclusive approach with over 80 percent participation of women and youths. Prophylactic antimicrobial use among broiler farmers dropped dramatically after FFS participation, falling from approximately 73% at baseline to below 10%, with 97.5% of graduates now using antibiotics only when birds are sick. This hands-on, behaviour change demonstrated tangible One Health benefits for households and local communities.

That momentum culminated in November with graduation ceremonies for 106 FFS farmers and facilitators in Matabeleland South and Mashonaland West, a milestone that underscores how participatory learning can transform practices in high-use value chains and support the FAO’s Reduce the Need for Antimicrobials on Farms for Sustainable Agrifood Systems Transformation (RENOFARM) initiative which promotes resilient, sustainable farming systems through innovation and responsible practices.

AMR does not respect sector boundaries. With FAO’s support, Zimbabwe moved to close long‑standing gaps by orienting plant and aquaculture specialists and drafting sector‑specific surveillance protocols for integration into the national AMR system. This milestone captures previously unmonitored AMR pathways, improves detection of resistant organisms across the full One Health spectrum, and informs more targeted, cost‑effective interventions that protect food safety, food security, trade, and ecosystem health.

The effort complements FAO’s global One Health work on AMR, led by the Animal Health Service (NSAH) through the Joint FAO/WHO Centre for Zoonotic Diseases and AMR (CJWZ), InFARM data systems and support for Codex AMR texts, ensuring Zimbabwe’s actions are anchored on international best practices.

In November, during World Antimicrobial Awareness Week, Zimbabwe hosted its first National AMR Scientific Conference, in collaboration with the Government, World Health Organization (WHO), Biomedical Research and Training Institute (BRTI), groups and other development partners. The conference showcased surveillance results, innovations and community solutions; it also spotlighted persistent gaps in diagnostics, stewardship and waste management, strengthening One Health action through strong UN-Government partnership. FAO’s support to surveillance moved further along the pathway from capacity building to data generation. Through the FAO Assessment Tool for Laboratories and AMR Surveillance Systems (FAO-ATLASS)-based reviews and Fleming Fund investments, Zimbabwe’s network of laboratories has expanded AMR surveillance across agrifood systems and environmental sectors, with field assessments informing roadmaps to improve data quality for decision making. Lessons from a national consolidation workshop, closing Phase I of the AMR Multi‑Partner Trust Fund, emphasized how joint FAO–WHO–WOAH–UNEP investments in surveillance, Infection Prevention and Control and vaccine production underpin sustainable progress.

Throughout the year, FAO convened government, private sector and civil society to translate policy into practice, highlighting the need for responsible pharmaceutical and agricultural practices, community‑level awareness, and public–private research to keep pace with evolving AMR trends. The Zimbabwe International Trade Fair policy dialogue underscored that AMR is not only a health issue but a development and food systems challenge requiring local and multisectoral and home-grown solutions.

As the year ended, Zimbabwe launched the National One Health Strategic Plan (2026 – 2030) positioning the country to further institutionalize cross‑ministerial governance and implementation frameworks, with FAO recognized for technical leadership, particularly in integrating plant health and environmental dimensions historically overlooked in One Health interventions.  

Looking ahead: consolidating gains and scaling up One Health interventions in 2026

Building on 2025 outcomes, FAO will work with the Government and partners to: (1) scale FFS and RENOFARM-aligned behaviour‑change packages in poultry and pilot them in other livestock value chains; (2) operationalize the newly drafted plant and aquaculture AMR surveillance protocols and integrate datasets into national platforms and InFARM; (3) deepen laboratory quality management and data analytics to turn surveillance outputs into policy and farm‑level action; and (4) convene regular multi‑stakeholder dialogues, linking youth, the private sector and research, to sustain momentum under NAP 2.0 and the National One Health Strategic Plan.

“FAO’s commitment is clear: reduce the need for antimicrobials through better biosecurity, prevention and stewardship; generate high‑quality evidence to guide decisions; and keep One Health coordination strong to ensure Zimbabwe’s agrifood systems, communities and ecosystems are protected. Together, we will translate 2025 experiences and lessons into 2026 solutions,” said Patrice Talla, FAO Subregional Coordinator for Southern Africa and Representative to Zimbabwe.