Recently the Veterinary fraternity in Uganda and across the world celebrated the World Veterinary Day. The day falls on the last Saturday of the month of April every year.
. This year’s World Veterinary Day took place on 28th April. Before the day is marked, countries under UN first run a weeklong event dubbed “the Veterinary Week.’ The week climaxes with main celebrations. In Uganda the day is coordinated by the Uganda Veterinary Association (UVA) in partnership with the ministries concerned. Uganda’s main celebrations for this year were held at Rushere Town Council in Kiruhura district.
It was presided over by Tress Bucyanayandi, the Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF). The function ran under the theme “Antimicrobial Resistance: Impact to Public Health.” The function was attended by the Policy makers, Drugs’ manufactures/distributors and Regulators, General public, Farmers, Academia, Medical practitioners and the Veterinarians themselves.
Antimicrobial drugs represent one of the main treatment products both in Veterinary and Human medicine for treatment of a variety of infectious bacterial and other microorganisms’ (diseases).
The drugs are used in prevention of diseases, and also in animal feeds to improve growth and feed efficiency. The targeted bacteria and other microorganisms are remarkably resilient and have capability to develop ways to survive drugs meant to kill them. This phenomenon of survival mechanisms is what is referred to as antimicrobial resistance or antibiotic resistance.
This phenomenon of antimicrobial resistant pathogens in animals poses a risk in terms of animal health and consequently public health when they are transmitted to humans as food borne contaminants. Due to it, sick animals that would previously respond to treatments with these antimicrobials fail to respond when future treatments with similar antimicrobials are administered.
It is good also to note that humans undergoing treatment against related organisms fail to respond having consumed animal products with residues of the antimicrobials in case drug withdrawal periods are not adhered to. Withdrawal is the period given between last administration of drug to a particular animal and when products from that animal – milk, eggs, meat, etc, are ready for consumption. It gives time for the drug to be excreted from the animal body. With time, the population of resistant microorganisms increase in the environment thus increasing the problem since it limits the range of drugs to treat diseases in both animals and humans.
Thus, addressing the issue of antimicrobial resistance through sensitization and awareness creation of farmers, the general public and other stakeholders is one of the most urgent priorities in the fields of public health in today’s Uganda. All Ugandans and Africans at large are consumers of various animal products and patients alike, so they need to know about it and act.
By Bright Rwamirama, Uganda’s
Minister of State for Animal Industry