New surveillance data released today shows that many countries in sub-Saharan Africa are "flying blind" when it comes to surveillance of antibiotic-resistant pathogens.

The data, collected and analyzed by the Mapping Antimicrobial Resistance and Antimicrobial Use Partnership (MAAP) and released at a meeting held at the African Union, show that in 14 sub-Saharan countries, only 5 of 15 antibiotic-resistant pathogens that have been designated by the World Health Organization (WHO) as "priority" pathogens are being consistently tested for resistance to antibiotics. And all five of those pathogens were found to be highly resistant.

The findings highlight a problem that public health and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) experts say will hamper global efforts to address the emergence and spread of AMR—the lack of solid data on antibiotic use and resistance in the countries that are being hardest hit by resistant pathogens.

A recent study in The Lancet estimated that sub-Saharan Africa has the highest mortality rate from AMR in the world, with 27.3 deaths per 100,000 attributable to AMR. But the authors of the report say most available data on AMR in Africa are based on "poor data foundations," with significant gaps in health, laboratory, and surveillance systems. And the inability of laboratories in Africa to routinely test bacteria for resistance is resulting in substandard care.

"Africa is struggling to fight drug-resistant pathogens, just like the rest of the world," Pascale Ondoa, MD, PhD, director of science and new initiatives of the African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM), said in a press release . "But our struggle is compounded by the fact that we don't have an accurate picture of how antimicrobial resistance is impacting our citizens and health systems. This study shines much-needed light on the crisis within the crisis."

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