Freetown - Developing the National Action Plan to combat antimicrobial resistance requires a multi-sectoral technical forum of professionals from different fields. In this respect, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) organized a writeshop together with the World Health Organization (WHO), in close partnership with One Health concerned ministries, departments and agencies to develop a costed National Action Plan for Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). The four-day writeshop was attended by 30 experts from the animal, human and environmental health sectors.

The AMR National Action Plan is aligned to the Global Action Plan jointly developed by WHO, FAO and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE). Drafted under the leadership of the national One Health Platform, thanks to the financial support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), the plan will guide the country efforts in the prevention and control of the spread of resistant organisms while ensuring the continuous availability of safe, effective and quality assured antimicrobial and their optimal use.

During the opening ceremony, Mr. Mohamed Alpha Bah, Ag. Director of the Livestock and Veterinary Services at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security thanked FAO for supporting AMR interventions in the country and added that “AMR is a global threat requiring concerted efforts”. In addition, Dr. Joseph Kanu, the AMR National Focal Point said that “AMR is among the 19 technical areas under the Joint External Evaluation (JEE) that requires intervention for the country to improve its scores”. He added that “during the recent internal assessment/review of JEE and NAPHs, some activities were identified and prioritized to be implemented in 2021 and 2022 and these will help to improve the country’s scores under the JEE”.

Previous efforts by Government to combat Antimicrobial Resistance

Antibiotic resistance happens when bacteria change so that antibiotics no longer work against them. Antimicrobial Resistance is considered an emerging global and national health concern, which calls for an imperative inter-sectoral collaboration to provide solutions to address this looming threat. The situation threatens patient care, economic growth, public health, and agriculture, economic and national security. In addressing AMR, the 68th World Health Assembly urged Member States to develop National Action Plans for Antimicrobial Resistance that are coherent with the objectives of the Global Action Plan (GAP) on AMR jointly developed by the WHO, FAO and OIE.

In order to tackle AMR issue in a holistic approach, FAO, WHO and OIE are supporting member states to develop and implement their National AMR Action plans based on the AMR Global Action Plan.

In 2017, the Ministries of Health, Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security as well as Environment Protection Agency, with support from partners including FAO, WHO and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) developed a five year National Strategic Plan for Antimicrobial Resistance (2018-2022) in Sierra Leone. The AMR Strategic Plan was launched in 2019 by H.E the President of Sierra Leone. However, the AMR Strategic plan has no operational plan that details priority activities, implementation arrangements, detailed budgeting and costing’, timelines of data collection and reporting methods thus jeopardizing its implementation and mobilization of resources.

In November 2020, FAO supported the country to celebrate World Antimicrobial Awareness Week. One of the key events of the commemoration was a scientific seminar which attracted participants from a wide range of scientists – human, animal and plant health scientists – from across UN agencies, Government of Sierra Leone and the donor community, following a One Health approach to addressing the antimicrobial resistance problem the country and the world at large is dealing with.

In February 2021, FAO, with funding support from the United Kingdom Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), under its Fleming Fund, supported the Government of Sierra Leone to establish a One Health governance structure for Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and Antimicrobial use (AMU) surveillance in the human and animal health sectors. The created governance mechanism comprises of a National Multi-sectoral Coordinating Group (NMCG) and Technical Working Groups (TWGs) with clear Terms of Reference (ToRs) to provide technical oversight during implementation of the AMR Strategic Plan. The governance structure is essential to tackle AMR challenges

By promoting collaboration across all sectors, a One Health approach can achieve the best health outcomes for people, animals, and plants in a shared environment. The development of the AMR National Action Plan will ground and implement the Strategic Plan and it will provide a coherent policy framework and priority actions to contain the emergence and spread of AMR, a threat that cannot be addressed alone.

Uzman Unis Bah

Communication Specialist - FAO Sierra Leone

[email protected] |+23232111882