World AMR Awareness Week is a global campaign to raise awareness and increase understanding of AMR and to promote global action to tackle the emergence and spread of drug-resistant pathogens.
As one of the WHO’s official health campaigns, World AMR Awareness Week (WAAW) is mandated by the World Health Assembly and is commemorated annually from 18-24 November.
The theme for WAAW 2025 is “Act Now: Protect Our Present, Secure Our Future.”
This theme underscores the urgent need to take bold, united action to address AMR, as it is already harming our health, food systems, environment and economies.
Global resistance has reached alarming levels
Drug-resistant infections are increasing; however, awareness, investment and action are still falling short.
One in six infections worldwide is now resistant to antibiotics, according to the latest World Health Organization report, highlighting a growing global health crisis.
Moreover, between 2018 and 2023, resistance increased in over 40% of monitored pathogen-antibiotic combinations, with an average annual rise of 5–15%.
In the face of this, it has never been so important for global commemoration and awareness, such as World AMR Awareness Week.
Strengthening laboratory systems, expanding surveillance, and ensuring treatment guidelines align with local resistance patterns are critical steps, and awareness raised by WAAW can help with this.
What is driving the increase in AMR?
The spread of AMR is largely driven by the overuse and misuse of antimicrobials in human and animal health, as well as in agriculture.
When antimicrobials are used incorrectly or excessively, resistant microbes emerge and spread, making that specific antimicrobial ineffective against subsequent infections caused by those microbes.
The result is that another antimicrobial must then be used, which, if overused or misused again, may lead to further resistance, resulting in fewer or no options for treating that infection.
This isn’t a future issue, let’s act now
Building on the momentum of the 2024 United Nations General Assembly High-level Meeting on AMR, this call to action urges all stakeholders, including governments, civil society, healthcare providers, veterinarians, farmers, environmental actors, and the public, to translate the political commitments into tangible, accountable, and life-saving interventions.
Strengthening surveillance, ensuring equitable access to quality medicines and diagnostics, fostering innovation and building resilient systems all require long-term commitment and resources.
Investment in AMR action is a smart move for a safer, healthier future. Whether it’s a hospital administrator setting up an antimicrobial stewardship team or a farmer adopting sustainable waste management practices, every action counts.
Raising awareness and working together is crucial
No matter your role this World AMR Awareness Week – whether shaping policy, delivering care, protecting ecosystems, or raising awareness – “Act Now: Protect Our Present, Secure Our Future” is a shared responsibility.
Together, we can keep antimicrobials effective and build a healthier, more sustainable world for future generations.
