Juliet Jacob 
ABUJA, Nigeria – Nigeria’s National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is warning that the country is “running out of time” to halt the accelerating spread of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), describing it as a mounting public-health emergency with national security implications.
Speaking on Thursday during the 2025 World Antimicrobial Awareness Week commemoration, Director-General Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye — represented by Dr Gbenga Fajemirokun — said AMR has evolved into a “One Health crisis” simultaneously threatening humans, livestock and the environment. She warned that misuse of antibiotics in hospitals, farms, veterinary clinics and food production is fuelling the silent rise of drug-resistant infections.
“Resistance anywhere is a threat everywhere,” she said. “If we fail to act now, we risk a future where routine infections become untreatable.”
NAFDAC said its strengthened AMR strategy focuses on tighter antimicrobial regulation, nationwide surveillance, responsible prescribing, and stronger collaboration with farmers, veterinarians, pharmacists and the livestock industry. The agency also pledged to ramp up public sensitisation to curb self-medication — a key driver of resistance.
Adeyeye acknowledged the support of partners including the Fleming Fund and the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, noting that both bodies have helped expand surveillance networks and laboratory capacity.
Calling for collective responsibility, she urged health workers to “prescribe cautiously,” veterinarians to follow treatment guidelines, farmers to embrace vaccination and improved husbandry, and pharmacists to dispense antibiotics only on prescription. “Protecting the present means acting together,” she said.
NAFDAC stressed that only coordinated national action can slow AMR’s spread. “We must unite to safeguard a healthier future for generations to come,” the agency said.
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