Dr.Takeshi Nishijima WHOJapan

Dr Takeshi Nishijima, MD, PhD, is a Technical Officer for Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) in the Essential Medicines and Health Technologies Unit, Division of Health Systems and Services, at the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific. Since joining WHO in 2019, he has served as a regional technical focal point for AMR, supporting Member States in strengthening national action plans, AMR surveillance and laboratory systems, outbreak preparedness and response, antimicrobial stewardship, and multisectoral coordination. He has led and coordinated the development of several major WHO publications, including the first regional report on antimicrobial consumption surveillance; Health and Economic Impacts of Antimicrobial Resistance in the Western Pacific Region, 2020–2030; regional guidance on responding to outbreaks of antimicrobial-resistant pathogens in health-care facilities which has been translated into five local languages; and guidance on establishing national and local AMR surveillance systems. Most recently, he led and coordinated the publication of the WHO Clinical Diagnostic Stewardship: A Practical Manual in June 2026. Dr Nishijima also coordinated the Initiative to Accelerate Action to Fight AMR in the Asia-Pacific Region, in collaboration with the Government of Japan and the WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia. This initiative resulted in a Joint Position Paper endorsed by 30 countries and submitted to the 2024 United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on AMR. Before joining WHO, he worked for more than 12 years as a clinician-scientist specializing in infectious diseases, HIV and sexually transmitted infections in Japan. He has authored more than 70 peer-reviewed publications.