Key actions to curb antimicrobial resistance: policy brief for parliamentarians

Overview

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a critical threat to the health of people and animals, food security and economic stability, with an estimated 39 million human deaths between 2025 and 2050 if it is left unchecked.  In 2024, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) published the Navigating New Horizons report, which identified AMR as a “signal of change”, warning that its effects reach far beyond human health – threatening long-term prosperity, food security, poverty reduction and environmental protection. 

"Key actions to curb antimicrobial resistance: policy brief for parliamentarians”, published by the Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Health Organization (WHO), UNEP and the World Organisation for Animal Health, proposes actionable strategies for parliamentarians and other legislators to respond to the crisis in their countries and beyond.

The policy brief outlines the escalating impact of AMR in the human, animal, agricultural and environmental health sectors due to misuse and overuse of antimicrobials, inadequate health care, suboptimal access to veterinary services, certain agricultural practices and environmental pollution. It describes global work to prevent and mitigate AMR, while identifying the challenges that remain. The policy brief offers practical recommendations, such as strengthening laws, securing financing, multisectoral governance and raising awareness to drive national and global responses. The brief describes use of a One Health approach for coordinated action to safeguard public health and sustainable development and guides parliamentarians towards possible evidence-based actions and sources of standardized information on AMR in various sectors.