Tanzania Reports 88% Drop in Antibiotic Use and 14% Fewer AMR Deaths

Tanzania reduced antibiotic consumption by 88 percent and deaths associated with antimicrobial resistance by 14 percent, according to figures released this week at the 17th University-Wide Research Dissemination Symposium. The data were presented during a review of the country's progress under the Second National Action Plan on AMR covering 2023-2028.

Officials said the plan follows a One Health approach that links human, animal, and environmental health measures. Surveillance systems have been strengthened, data-sharing platforms expanded, domestic financing increased, and public awareness campaigns intensified, the presentation stated.

A Kiswahili term for antimicrobial resistance, UVIDA, was introduced alongside the nationwide Holelaholela Itakukosti campaign, which reached 24.7 million people and received recognition from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Compliance with infection prevention and control measures in health facilities rose 60 percent.

In the animal health sector, expanded livestock vaccination programs, enhanced biosecurity, and food safety interventions reduced disease outbreaks and unnecessary antimicrobial use.

Cooperation at the French Embassy in Tanzania, Mr Luc Blanco, said AMR remains one of the world's leading public health challenges and reaffirmed France's support for regional One Health initiatives. The French-funded HATUA Project, operating in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia, was cited as an example of cross-border cooperation on surveillance and evidence-based interventions.

MUHAS Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Planning, Finance and Administration, Professor Erasto Mbugi, said antimicrobial resistance threatens to reverse decades of medical progress by making common infections harder to treat. Globally, AMR is linked to an estimated 4.71 million deaths each year, including 1.14 million directly attributable to drug-resistant bacterial infections.