Rwanda launches 5-year plan to fight drug-resistant infections

The move is part of a global effort to stop the misuse of antibiotics and protect the power of life-saving medicines.

Formally approved by the Ministries of Health, Agriculture, and Environment, the second National Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance will run from 2025 to 2029.

The plan was first introduced in December 2024 during World Antimicrobial Awareness Week.

Antimicrobial resistance, or AMR, happens when bacteria and other germs become stronger than the drugs meant to kill them.

According to health experts, this could make common infections, surgeries, and even childbirth more dangerous if action isn’t taken.

“This marks another important step in our journey to safeguard the effectiveness of life-saving medicines for future generations,” Dr Claude Muvunyi, Director General of the Rwanda Biomedical Centre, told The New Times.

The new strategy builds on Rwanda’s first AMR plan, which ran from 2020 to 2024 but takes a broader approach by focusing not just on human health, but also on animals and the environment.

The plan was developed by the Rwanda Biomedical Centre with help from local groups and international partners, including the World Health Organisation, the Food and Agriculture Organisation, and several health NGOS.

It focuses on raising awareness about AMR, improving hygiene to stop infections, and using antibiotics more carefully in hospitals, farms, and communities.

The plan also pushes for new tools like better tests, vaccines, and treatments.

Rwanda is the first country in Africa to use a tool called the Smart Choice Process to help decide which actions to take. The full plan is expected to cost around $29.6 million.

Officials believe the plan will help protect the country’s health system, reduce the cost of treating drug-resistant infections, and support international goals to make medicine safer and more effective worldwide.