The Federal Government has acknowledged gaps in Nigeria’s Antimicrobial Resistance, AMR, surveillance, as available estimates may not fully reflect the country’s burden of drug-resistant infections.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, at a joint One Health ministerial briefing ahead of the fifth Global High-Level Ministerial Conference on AMR, said Nigeria had evidence of antimicrobial resistance in hospitals, but surveillance gaps made it difficult to produce accurate national estimates.
“The specific numbers depend on the surveillance capabilities. I have to admit that there are still gaps in surveillance,” he said.
He added that Nigeria’s figures “may not be the same” as estimates from countries with stronger surveillance systems.
AMR occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites become resistant to medicines used to treat infections, making them less effective or ineffective.
The minister’s comments come as efforts continue to strengthen Nigeria’s ability to generate AMR data.
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In December 2025, Nigeria launched its first nationally representative AMR survey to establish a national baseline on antimicrobial resistance and strengthen routine surveillance.
The survey is designed to cover 40 to 45 randomly selected health facilities across the country and involve about 35,000 patients suspected of having bloodstream infections.
A 2025 study assessing 302 laboratories in Nigeria also found significant gaps as only 7.3 per cent of the laboratories surveyed were considered fully ready for AMR surveillance, while 12.3 per cent reported participating in AMR surveillance.
The researchers said AMR surveillance was concentrated in government and tertiary laboratories, leaving lower-level and rural facilities underused and resulting in gaps in community-level data.
Mr Pate said the government is responding to AMR through a whole-of-government approach involving the health, agriculture, livestock and environment sectors.
He urged Nigerians to avoid indiscriminate antibiotic use adding that adequate vaccination would reduce the need for antimicrobials.
“It’s not every cough that needs to use antibiotics. It’s not every catarrh that needs to use antibiotics,” he said.
Mr Pate assured that the government would continue working with state governments, private-sector stakeholders and development partners to strengthen Nigeria’s response to AMR.
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