Antimicrobial Resistance

About AMR

What is it?
What is it?
FAO's role
FAO's role
Who we are
Who we are
Key sectors
Key sectors

Antimicrobial drugs are key in the treatment of diseases, and their use is essential to protect both human and animal health. However, antimicrobials misuse in the livestock sector, aquaculture and crop production is a major concern as a risk for emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistant micro-organisms.

Key facts

In 2019, 5 million human deaths were associated by bacterial antimicrobial resistance worldwide, including 1.3 million human deaths attributable to bacterial AMR (The Lancet)

27 different antimicrobial classes used in animals

Total global animal health market in 2011 was equivalent to USD 22 billion (OECD)

118 countries reported quantitative data on antimicrobial use in animals between 2015 and 2017, an increase from 89 reporting in 2015

Publications

World AMR Awareness Week 2026 Campaign Guide

World AMR Awareness Week is a global campaign that aims to raise awareness and encourage action among One Health stakeholders to tackle the emergence and spread of drug-resistant pathogens. Various events and activities are held [...]

Improving small ruminant health and productivity – Practical training materials for veterinarians and farmers for better farm management

This highly visual set of training materials focuses on core farm-level practices known to impact animal health and production outcomes, such as nutrition, grazing and pasture management, reproduction, lambing and kidding management, milk hygiene, disease [...]

News

Rx Vision: An artificial intelligence enabled digital tool helping promote responsible antibiotic use in Bangladesh

Misuse and overuse of antibiotics are major drivers of antimicrobial resistance, posing human, animal and environmental health threat worldwide. In Bangladesh widespread use of fluoroquinolones has become a concern with studies reporting high levels of [...]

Fifth annual meeting strengthens regional laboratory cooperation on antimicrobial resistance

The meeting, hosted on 15–16 September by Mongolia’s General Authority for Veterinary Services and State Central Veterinary Laboratory, with technical support from FAO, brought together representatives of national laboratories and authorities, FAO experts and technical partners to [...]

FAO guidelines promote responsible antibiotic use in animals in Serbia

Veterinarians in Serbia will have new practical guidance to support more responsible and effective use of antibiotics in animals. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in cooperation with the Ministry of [...]

Multimedia

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