Maseru, Lesotho
Lesotho develops a national action plan on AMR
June 28, 2019
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From 8 to 11 September 2025, WOAH facilitated Namibia’s End-Term Review (ETR) of the first Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) National Action Plan (NAP 1.0, 2017-2022) implementation by organising a multi-sectoral capacity-building workshop in Windhoek, Namibia’s capital. This review assessed the progress of policy implementation, identified institutional strengths and systemic challenges, and extracted valuable lessons to guide evidence-based governance reforms and inform the development of the subsequent AMR National Action Plan (NAP 2.0). The workshop was attended by twenty-three participants engaged in One Health and AMR activities, representing the tripartite Ministries of Health, Agriculture, and Environment. The primary objective of the review was to derive lessons learned that would support evidence-based governance reforms and ensure that NAP 2.0 is fully grounded in evidence, results-driven, aligned with national priorities, and capable of delivering measurable impact and sustained progress.
The key insight from the ETR underscores that effective governance of any AMR policy, i.e. rooted in strong leadership and enduring political commitment, reinforced by robust institutions, efficient coordination mechanisms, and well-designed policies and regulations characterized by clear accountability and transparency, is essential for successfully tackling the challenge of antimicrobial resistance.
The implementation of the AMR National Action Plan (NAP) is not without systemic challenges. Weak coordination among ministries and limited multisectoral engagement hinder effective governance, while the One Health approach remains difficult to operationalise in practice. The exclusion of the Ministry of Finance from the earlier NAP development further undermines financial planning and sustainability.
AMR represents an invisible silent pandemic, and policymakers tend to prioritise more visible public health concerns, making sustained advocacy difficult. In addition, competing national priorities and persistent funding gaps continue to stall progress, threatening the overall effectiveness of AMR response efforts. Addressing these bottlenecks is critical to ensuring that the NAP delivers meaningful, sustainable impact.
