World AMR Awareness Week2026 · Date · History · Messages · Quotes
World Health Assembly-mandated WHO campaign
About World AMR Awareness Week
World AMR Awareness Week is observed from 18 to 24 November as a global campaign to improve understanding of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and encourage action across human, animal, plant and environmental health.
The campaign began in 2015 in the context of the WHO Global Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance. Its public name has broadened over time as the campaign moved from an initial antibiotic-focused label toward the wider One Health framing of antimicrobial resistance.
Why World AMR Awareness Week matters
AMR occurs when microorganisms no longer respond to medicines that were previously effective against them. The Week is therefore not simply an awareness slogan: it links communication with prescribing, infection prevention, surveillance, agriculture, environmental action and stewardship.
Because AMR spans multiple sectors, the current campaign is coordinated through the Quadripartite partnership of FAO, UNEP, WHO and WOAH.
History of World AMR Awareness Week
On 26 May 2015, the Sixty-eighth World Health Assembly adopted WHA68.7 and endorsed the Global Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance. The plan identified a global annual awareness campaign as an activity under its first objective on communication, education and training.
WHO launched the first World Antibiotic Awareness Week from 16 to 22 November 2015. Official WHO campaign archives show the campaign later operating under the broader name World Antimicrobial Awareness Week.
On 6 June 2023, the Quadripartite explicitly rebranded World Antimicrobial Awareness Week as World AMR Awareness Week. The current campaign is observed from 18 to 24 November every year.
How the observance developed
This timeline uses documented milestones from reviewed sources. Missing stages are left out rather than guessed.
World Health Organization through the Global Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance
WHO states that the 2015 Global Action Plan identified organization of a global annual awareness campaign as an activity under its first objective, and that the annual campaign was thereby established.
World Health Organization / Sixty-eighth World Health Assembly
WHA68.7 and the Global Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance
First documented observance
WHO explicitly described the 16–22 November 2015 campaign as the first World Antibiotic Awareness Week.
Rebranded World Antimicrobial Awareness Week as World AMR Awareness Week while retaining the WAAW acronym.
Quadripartite (FAO, UNEP, WHO and WOAH) · Quadripartite rebranding announcement for WAAW
Quadripartite: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), World Health Organization (WHO), and World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH)
The 2023 official rebranding announcement identifies these four organizations as the Quadripartite coordinating the global annual campaign.
What the evidence establishes
Confirmed institutional roles and milestones are shown first. Details that could not be established from the reviewed sources are listed separately below.
2 fields not established in reviewed sources
Later institutional actions
Later recognition, renaming, mergers or date changes are kept separate from original establishment.
How to Observe World AMR Awareness Week
Review local guidance on when antibiotics are and are not appropriate, using public-health or professional sources rather than informal advice.
Map one AMR pathway across human health, animal health, food systems and the environment to see why a One Health response is necessary.
Use campaign materials to discuss infection prevention, vaccination, diagnostics, stewardship and responsible antimicrobial use.
World AMR Awareness Week Facts
World AMR Awareness Week is currently observed from 18 to 24 November.
The Global Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance was endorsed by WHA68.7 on 26 May 2015.
The first World Antibiotic Awareness Week ran from 16 to 22 November 2015.
The Quadripartite announced the current World AMR Awareness Week name on 6 June 2023.
The Quadripartite comprises FAO, UNEP, WHO and WOAH.
World AMR Awareness Week Messages
World AMR Awareness Week is a reminder to listen without stigma, share trustworthy information and treat every person with dignity.
On World AMR Awareness Week, support careful antimicrobial use and evidence-based infection prevention.
Marking World AMR Awareness Week with care means learning from credible sources and making space for the voices and experiences of people most affected.
Today, may World AMR Awareness Week turn attention into informed action, empathy and support that lasts beyond a single day.
On World AMR Awareness Week, may awareness be matched by compassion, reliable information and practical support for people directly affected.
World AMR Awareness Week Quotes
“Antimicrobial Resistance is silently undermining decades of health progress.”
Topic and context
What this page does not assume
- Keep the source-defined country, community, organizer or institutional scope; do not silently broaden it.
- Do not treat the title alone as proof of government recognition or public-holiday status.
- Do not add a creator, founding story or origin claim unless the supporting evidence establishes it.
- Health Information Not Medical Advice.
Evidence & sources
Sources used across the guide are gathered here. Labels show how each source supports the page, and contextual references are kept separate from primary evidence.
World Health Organization — WHA68.7, Global action plan on antimicrobial resistance (opens in a new tab)
WHO — World AMR Awareness Week (opens in a new tab)
Dedicated Authoritative Page
World Health Organization — WAAW will now be World AMR Awareness Week (opens in a new tab)
World Health Organization — World Antibiotic Awareness Week 2015 (opens in a new tab)
Understand it, compare it, then explore further
Start with the most common factual questions, then compare closely related observances and explore useful connections.
Frequently asked questions
When is World AMR Awareness Week?
18–24 November The documented recurrence rule is: 18–24 November.
Does World AMR Awareness Week fall on the same date every year?
Yes. It uses a fixed annual date unless stronger evidence changes the pattern.
Is World AMR Awareness Week an official public holiday?
The reviewed sources verify it within this scope: World Health Organization official health campaign. That recognition does not by itself make it a statutory public holiday; the site only makes public-holiday claims when reliable evidence explicitly does so.
Who established or recognizes World AMR Awareness Week?
The reviewed sources identify World Health Organization / Sixty-eighth World Health Assembly as the proclaiming or establishing body. The proposer or originator is recorded separately as World Health Organization through the Global Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance. Current facilitation or coordination is recorded as Quadripartite: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), World Health Organization (WHO), and World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).
Is World AMR Awareness Week international or country-specific?
The documented scope is international or global: World Health Organization official health campaign. That does not mean every country treats the date as a public holiday or observes it in the same way.
How is this page verified?
The factual information is checked against reviewed sources, including the date pattern, scope and institutional history. This page was checked on 2026-09-05.
When is World AMR Awareness Week?
The current campaign is observed every year from 18 to 24 November.
When did the campaign begin?
WHO launched the first World Antibiotic Awareness Week from 16 to 22 November 2015 after the World Health Assembly endorsed the Global Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance.
Why did the name change?
In 2023 the Quadripartite rebranded World Antimicrobial Awareness Week as World AMR Awareness Week after global consultations, explaining that “AMR” better represented the resistance challenge while retaining the WAAW acronym.