Medical experts have warned that antimicrobial resistance is becoming one of Kenya's biggest public health threats.
They are calling for increased government funding and stronger coordination to prevent thousands more deaths linked to drug-resistant infections.
Researchers say the misuse and overuse of antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines in humans, livestock and agriculture are accelerating resistance, making once-effective treatments less able to fight infections.
According to health researchers, AMR contributed to 6,670 deaths in Kenya in 2021, while another 28,500 deaths were associated with drug-resistant infections.
The warning was issued during a two-day national summit on antimicrobial resistance in Mombasa, convened by the Ministry of Health through the Kenya National Public Health Institute and the Kenya Medical Research Institute.
The meeting has brought together policymakers, researchers, county officials and development partners to discuss sustainable financing and governance for AMR interventions.
KNPHI national AMR focal point Dr Emmanuel Tanui said Kenya had developed a National Action Plan on Prevention and Containment of AMR for the 2023-27 period, but implementation remains underfunded following changes in donor support.
“The entire plan costs about Sh2 billion, which is a five-year plan. When you break it down, it comes to around Sh600 million per annum to implement,” he said.
Dr Tanui urged the national and county governments to allocate dedicated resources for AMR activities, noting that many health functions responsible for prevention and surveillance are managed by counties.
“It means that basically if we can set aside finances to support implementation of the annual activities either at the national government or the counties, we know a lot of the sectors are devolved, then we can be able to implement some of these priority activities,” he said.
He said stronger investment would enable the country to expand surveillance, improve laboratory capacity and implement priority interventions aimed at containing resistant infections.
Kemri acting director of research capacity building Dr Martin Bundi warned that AMR could also trigger a major economic crisis if left unchecked.
“The global projections indicate antimicrobial resistance could reduce global GDP by 3.8 per cent and push an estimated 24 million people into poverty, with low- and middle-income countries facing the greatest impact,” he said.
Kemri health systems researcher Dr Edna Mutua called for a One Health approach, saying the fight against AMR must involve the human health, veterinary, agriculture, fisheries, wildlife and environmental sectors.
She said responsible prescribing and dispensing of antibiotics, alongside better stewardship of antimicrobial medicines, is critical to slowing the spread of resistance.
“We cannot say that if we address issues in human health, then we are good to go. We have got to think about what is happening in our crop production, in our animal production, environment sector, our fisheries and aquaculture and even wildlife,” Dr Mutua said.
National Environment Management Authority officer Dr John Mumbo, the senior principal for environment, compliance and enforcemen, said the agency had strengthened regulations and surveillance to monitor pharmaceutical waste and untreated effluents entering the environment.
He called for proper disposal of antibiotics and improved waste management to reduce antimicrobial residues that contribute to resistance.
Veterinary services director Dr John Kariuki said diseases originating in animals account for more than 70 per cent of infectious disease threats, underscoring the need for stronger disease prevention and control measures in livestock and wildlife.
