🐕 New project to eradicate rabies in over 50 low-income countries

• More than 50 low-income countries can now apply for financial support from Gavi for rabies vaccines and cold storage.
• North and South America have reduced rabies cases by over 95 percent through dog vaccination.
• In Zambia, one district has had no cases of rabies for a year after an extensive dog vaccination campaign.

Rabies claims 60,000 lives annually

Every year, about 60,000 people die from rabies, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), the number could be much higher as many cases go unreported. 95 percent of documented cases occur in Asia and Africa, where many people in poverty in rural areas lack access to vaccines, according to the NPR.

According to WHO, up to 99 percent of rabies cases in humans come from dogs - through bites, scratches, or even licks, as the virus is present in the rabid dog's saliva and can enter through small wounds in the skin.

In Gabon, a treatment with four doses can cost 25 dollars per dose for people without health insurance. Additionally, the vaccine must be kept cold, something many remote communities lack the ability to do.

New support program opens opportunities

A new program through Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, now makes it possible for over 50 low-income countries to apply for financial support for rabies vaccines and equipment like cold storage. The initiative is part of the Zero by 30 campaign, which aims to stop deaths caused by dog bites by 2030.

North and South America have shown that rabies can be controlled. The regions have reduced the number of rabies cases by over 95 percent. Between January 2023 and early May 2024, only nine cases of rabies from dog bites were reported in both continents.

Zambia shows the way

In the Kabwe district in Zambia, Kenneth Chawinga, former district veterinarian, conducted an extensive dog vaccination campaign. Through collaboration with local companies, radio broadcasts, and traditional leaders, the team managed to vaccinate over 70 percent of the dogs in the district. The result: not a single case of rabies in humans during the past year.

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