Tackling Antimicrobial Resistance from the Ground Up: Experts Unite to Drive Sustainable Solutions to Antimicrobial Resistance in Africa

From 2-3 October 2025, the University of Venda’s Faculty of Science, Engineering and Agriculture hosted the 3rd Annual SAMRC-UNIVEN Antimicrobial Resistance and Global Health Symposium at the 2Ten Hotel in Sibasa. Organised by the SAMRC-UNIVEN Antimicrobial Resistance and Global Health Research Unit, the event brought together over 80 delegates comprising researchers, healthcare professionals, postgraduate students, postdoctoral fellows, policy and decision makers, and community leaders, under the theme ‘Antimicrobial Resistance and the Community.’ It was a forum to share research findings and explore practical strategies to address the threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in partnership with communities. Research findings were presented on studies conducted in Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, and Zambia.

Prof Joseph Francis, in his welcome remarks, highlighted that AMR is a significant public health challenge, but also an opportunity to transform community engagement, bridge science and soci-ety, and build resilient health systems. He posed key questions for deliberation, including how to translate scientific evidence into behavioural change at grassroots levels, how to develop sustain-able and equitable policies and practices, the role of African universities in ensuring scientifically, socially just, and culturally relevant solutions, and how to safeguard antimicrobials while balancing innovation, access, and stewardship.

He concluded by declaring the symposium open, hoping it would inspire fresh ideas, spark collaborations,
and renew energy among participants.

Pascal Bessong, Director of the SAMRC-UNIVEN Antimicrobial Resistance and Global Health Research Unit
Prof Pascal Bessong, in his message as the Symposium Chair, reminded delegates that low and middle-income countries disproportionately bore the burden of AMR, and encouraged research-ers to work so as to “solve your own problems in a world-class manner.”

He emphasised that the contributing factors to AMR are varied and interconnected; therefore, sus-tainable solutions would only come through the participation of all contributing sectors. He under-lined the fact that exposure to antimicrobials is a key driver of resistance development, and the ra-tional use of antimicrobials in medicine and agriculture is crucial to mitigate AMR. Moreover, there is a need for context-specific research, community engagement and mobilisation to co-produce knowledge for effective interventions at the community level. Furthermore, researchers should aim beyond scientific publications; and position their research for improved health and livelihoods.

Delivering her keynote address entitled ‘Community engagement as an essential dimension of ethical health research,’ Dr Lyn Horn noted, “We want researchers to come in through the front door, not through the window.” She cites the San Code of Ethics as a value-based code that prioritises respect, honesty, justice, and care in community health research. Researchers should not only obtain ethics approval but also reflect on potential ethical issues throughout the project and engage with the community to ensure that the research is relevant, beneficial, and respectful.

Eight benchmarks for ethical research include social value, scientific validity, community engage-ment, fair participant selection, informed consent, respectful participant treatment, acceptable risk-benefit assessment, and ethics review and approval.

Meanwhile, Prof Mohsen Naghavi, in his keynote address entitled ‘AMR, Pathogen Distribution and Infectious Syndrome in Sub-Saharan Africa with Focus on South Africa,’ highlighted that AMR is a significant public health challenge, with 8 million associated deaths projected by 2050. He stressed how critical it is to comprehend the burden of AMR, including pathogen distribution, patterns of antibiotic resistance, and future trends. He underscored the need for continuous collaborative research to address the ever-growing threat of AMR.

On the second day of the symposium, Professor William Shivoga delivered a virtual keynote on AMR surveillance and community-centred strategies. Representing the UK-Africa One Health Con-sortium Initiative, he shared insights from a decade of work in East Africa focused on environmen-tal AMR, particularly in water systems around Lake Victoria. He identified critical barriers to prog-ress, including weak surveillance infrastructure, technological gaps, and a lack of public awareness.

In response, his team has launched mobile One Health service centres and initiated the Africa AMR Project, set to begin in early 2026 with UK funding, to integrate human, animal, and environmental monitoring. The project includes innovative solutions such as eco-village wastewater treatment systems, capacity building for researchers and healthcare workers, and the development of digital platforms for AMR data sharing. Central to their approach is community engagement, ensuring that interventions are locally appropriate, ethically grounded, and sustainable.

Both day one and two featured a range of insightful research presentations from various universi-ties and research centres, complementing the symposium’s focus on real-world solutions and ac-ademic collaboration. Each session fostered an engaging atmosphere, with lively question-and-an-swer segments that encouraged critical discussion, knowledge exchange, and cross-sector learning, further enriching the symposium’s aim to unite science and society in the fight against AMR.

The roundtable discussion on AMR in Africa focused on the urgent need for a multidisciplinary, multi-sectoral response to the growing threat, particularly in low-resource settings. Stakeholders from national, provincial, and district levels, comprising clinicians, microbiologists, environmental scientists, social scientists, policymakers, and community representatives, emphasised that AMR is not solely a health issue, but has enormous and diverse socio-economic deficits. The session underscored the importance of integrating community engagement, improving regulation, and promoting collaboration across disciplines and across national borders. African-specific challenges such as substandard drug quality, over-the-counter antibiotic access, and limited research capacity further underlined the need for an African-led, context-specific One Health approach. The discus-sion concluded that only by uniting diverse expertise and sectors can effective and sustainable AMR solutions be developed and implemented across the continent.
Closing the symposium, Professor Cebisa Nesamvuni expressed deep appreciation on behalf of the organising team for the successful conclusion of the symposium. She highlighted the rich learning, active participation, both in-person and online, and the importance of the multidisciplinary discus-sions held over the two days.

She praised the university’s leadership for their support and alignment with strategic priorities, and acknowledged the insightful presentations, especially on ethics and community engagement. She emphasised the critical battle against AMR as a collective responsibility, involving contributions from all sectors and individuals. She urged participants to take the knowledge gained forward, re-main positive, and turn challenges into opportunities. Her message was one of hope, collaboration, and determination to not just reduce, but eliminate AMR through joint efforts.
The symposium closed with a renewed commitment from all participants to turn scientific evidence into action, strengthen rural health systems, and combat AMR through cross-sector collaboration and innovation.

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