Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) remains a significant national and global public health issue, affecting the human health, animal health, plant, agriculture, food, and the environment. It is driven by factors such as irrational antibiotic use, poor infection control, and weak regulation in animal husbandry, causing approximately 15,700 deaths in 2019 in the Philippines (Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, 2019). The World Health Organization (WHO) lists AMR as one of the top 10 global health threats, with its effects, particularly severe in low- and middle-income countries (Kanan et al., 2023; Otaigbe & Elikwu, 2023). 

Recognizing the urgency and complexity of this issue, the Philippine health sector established the Inter-Agency Committee on AMR in 2014 to spearhead the formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and supervision of a national action plan on AMR. Since then, the government has intensified its focus on combating AMR, ensuring that interventions are guided by a synergistic national action plan that is in harmony with the regional and global objectives and responsive to the local needs of the health sector. Several iterations of Philippine National Action Plans (PNAP) were published since the committee’s formation, reflecting the evolving AMR landscape and the country’s commitment to addressing it.

The 2024-2028 PNAP, its third version, was developed with support from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and assistance from the Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health – Center for Research and Innovation (ACRI). This action plan serves as the country’s roadmap for the next medium term, designed to mobilize all key stakeholders in the AMR field to implement effective policies and programs, and improve sustainability initiatives to address and mitigate the impact of AMR across all sectors (human, animal and plant, environment, education, and economy).

Read here: https://pharma.doh.gov.ph/2025/06/10/philippine-national-action-plan-2024-2028/