WAAW 2025: CAMO-Net’s highlights
On this final day of World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (WAAW) 2025, we’re taking a moment to look back at what has been an incredibly busy and inspiring week across the CAMO-Net community. From creative competitions and community dialogues to articles, debates and hands-on learning, our sites around the world have been active across sectors, disciplines and time zones, all working towards more responsible antimicrobial use.
Throughout the week, we’ve been sharing WAAW content across our social media channels – including our arcade-inspired visuals created for this year’s campaign.
Here are some of our highlights:
Spotlight: Meet the CAMO-Net Fellows
Meet some of our CAMO-Net Fellows – a talented group of early-career researchers contributing to safer, smarter and more effective antimicrobial use.
Uganda: Progress and challenges in addressing AMR
Dr Andrew Kambugu reflected on Uganda’s progress in strengthening coordination across human, animal and environmental health.
Read more
India: Turning AMR awareness into action
Professor Nusrat Shafiq outlined how PGIMER is translating AMR awareness into practical action in line with this year’s global theme.
WAAW Community Dialogue Webinar
CAMO-Net brought together participants from across our global network for a community dialogue event exploring approaches for supporting responsible antibiotic use.
Read more
CAMO-Net Uganda: A little bit of everything
The Uganda team led a week of clinical, community and national engagement activities, including a journal club at IDI-Mulago, the launch of an AMR Club at St Martins Primary School, public engagement sessions and participation in the 10th National AMR Conference.
PCT Journal Club
The week kicked off at IDI-Mulago with a Prevention Care and Treatment programme Journal Club, where Dr Fiona Mutesi shared results from her study on prevalence, factors associated and experiences of antibiotic misuse among persons living with HIV at two large HIV clinics in kampala. This session brought together clinicians and researchers to discuss innovative diagnostic approaches that reduce unnecessary antibiotic use.
Launch of AMR Club & Community Engagement
At St Martins Primary School, CAMO-Net Uganda hub launched an AMR Club to empower young learners as champions of responsible antibiotic use. The day also featured an AMR talk and drama team dance at IDI-Mulago, blending education with entertainment to engage the public creatively.
National AMR Conference
The spotlight shifted to the 10th National AMR Conference hosted by the National One Health Platform under the Ministry of Health. Discussions focused on Uganda’s progress in AMR surveillance, policy implementation, and community-level interventions.
CAMO-Net India: Painting, photography and videos
CAMO-Net India organised painting, mobile photography and short video competitions on the theme “One Health and AMR”, engaging school and college students through creative formats.
CAMO-Net Brazil: Photography competition
CAMO-Net Brazil ran its second photography contest for primary health care professionals in São Caetano do Sul, encouraging reflection on responsible antibiotic use within the community. The results should be with us soon!
CAMO-Net Pakistan: AMR Symposium
CAMO-Net Pakistan hosted an AMR symposium at Dow University of Health Sciences, highlighting current work and fostering collaboration ahead of WAAW. Read more
CAMO-Net Ghana (WACCBIP): AMR Debate and hands-on learning
At WACCBIP in Ghana, the team held a debate between young scientists from Ghana and Tanzania, alongside hands-on microbiology training and sessions spanning science communication, diagnostics, AI, project management and drug discovery.
CAMO-Net Timor-Leste: Stakeholder forum and student posters
Menzies Timor-Leste, through CAMO-Net, partnered with Universidade da Paz to commemorate WAAW.
The event brought together stakeholders from human and animal health sectors to raise awareness of antimicrobial resistance and promote responsible antibiotic use and infection prevention practices. Hosted at Universidade da Paz in Dili, the programme included presentations and a panel discussion focused on coordinated action to strengthen health systems.
Activities also featured an AMR video presentation, a quiz, and a student poster competition. Participants included representatives from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, National Health Laboratory, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Universidade da Paz and other universities, along with the Menzies Timor-Leste team.
Eh!Woza AMR animations (South Africa)
Eh!Woza – part of CAMO-Net South Africa – released a three-part animation series co-created with IkamvaYouth learners, researchers and media specialists. The videos explain AMR in accessible, youth-friendly formats across their digital platforms.
CAMO-Net South Africa: Community advocates, traditional communication and trusted messages
CAMO-Net South Africa partnered with Eh!Woza to host a community engagement day at Groote Schuur Hospital, bringing community advocates from Khayelitsha together with researchers and health professionals to explore how AMR messages can be communicated in ways that feel meaningful, trusted and culturally grounded.
The event drew on traditional forms of communication – including song, dance and storytelling – to discuss the realities of antibiotic use at the community level. One of the songs presented on the day focused on the issue of sharing antibiotics, highlighting an everyday behaviour with important implications for responsible use.
A central theme running through the conversations was trust:
Where do people receive information they truly believe?
Participants shared that trusted sources vary widely – from NGOs working in local communities, to health workers speaking in clinic waiting rooms, to experts invited to speak at church, and even social media. As the group noted, there is no one-size-fits-all approach; understanding local contexts and communication traditions is essential.
The Fleming Initiative: WAAW Billboard Campaign
The Fleming Initiative launched a public campaign on the Piccadilly Lights billboard in London, featuring personal stories from nearly 300 contributors across 30 countries on the impact antibiotics have had in their lives. Read more
WAAW is always a reminder of what can be achieved when communities, researchers, clinicians, students and policymakers come together. We’re grateful to everyone across our community who contributed their creativity, insight and energy throughout the week.
