Fighting Antimicrobial Resistance: Development and Implementation of the Ghanaian National Action Plan (2017-2021)

Abstract

In recent years, Ghana has been recognised as a leading player in addressing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Africa. However, based on our literature review, we could not ascertain whether the core elements of the national action plan (NAP) were implemented in practice. In this paper, we present a qualitative analysis of the development of AMR-related policies in Ghana, including the NAP. We conducted 13 semi-structured expert interviews to obtain at a more thorough understanding of the implementation process for the AMR NAP and to highlight its accomplishments and shortcomings. The results show that AMR policies, as embodied in the NAP, have led to an extended network of cooperation between stakeholders in many political fields. Broadly, limited allocation of financial resources from the government and from international cooperation have been deplored. Furthermore, the opportunity for using the NAP in mainstreaming the response to the threat of AMR has not been seized. To the general public, this remained hidden behind a number of other relevant health topics such as infection prevention, veterinary services and pharmaceutical regulation. As a One Health (OH) challenge, developing countries could integrate AMR NAPs into other health and environmental programmes to improve its implementation in practice.