Skip to main contentMenu
about
this image

India

© Sasikumar Ramachandran

India has 20,847 preventable rabies deaths each year, and spends a total of US$2,390,332,274 each year on rabies.*

*Hampson et al. (2015) PLoS NTD

The Solution

Why 2030?

A number of countries have committed to ending human deaths from canine rabies, including Kenya by 2030, the first country in Africa to do so. The ASEAN countries have committed to elimination of dog-transmitted rabies deaths by 2020. In the Americas, several countries have already succeeded in eliminating canine rabies deaths under the Pan American Health Organization’s region wide programme, and only 7 out of 35 countries still report human cases. The UN's Sustainable Development Goals include the aim to end the epidemics of neglected tropical diseases, including rabies, by 2030. The world has the tools it needs to End Rabies Now. It is time for the international community to come together to help rabies-endemic countries to end deaths due to canine rabies once and for all.

The world has the tools to end rabies

By vaccinating 70% of dogs, countries can create “herd immunity", effectively slowing the spread of rabies until it dies out entirely.

Our Stories

Read about the progress being made in controlling rabies in communities around the world.

How to Eliminate Rabies

  • Vaccinating Dogs

    According to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), a number of countries in Latin America have reduced human and dog rabies by over 90%, thanks to mass dog vaccination.

    With a minimum of 70% dog vaccination coverage, countries can effectively end dog-transmitted rabies in people for good. Safe and effective vaccines are available, and this method is the only way to eliminate the disease at its source, besides being the most cost-effective solution.

  • Vaccinating People

    Every year, almost 30 million people receive treatment, following a bite from a dog that is rabid or suspected to have rabies. This treatment is estimated to prevent millions of rabies deaths annually. Pre-exposure vaccines are also available for individuals considered to be at high risk for rabies infection, including travellers to rural areas of endemic countries and workers who could be exposed to the live rabies virus.

  • Educating Communities

    Raising public awareness of rabies, including how to prevent dog bites, vaccinating dogs to prevent the disease, and appropriate treatment and care if exposed to the virus, is critically important to end rabies and save lives.

  • Diagnosing and monitoring the disease

    Laboratories and systems need to be put in place to diagnose cases of rabies in both dogs and humans, and to monitor the progress of control programmes. Once rabies has been controlled, this will also help to keep the area rabies-free.

Rabies and One Health

The One Health approach recognises that human and animal health are connected, and that collaborative cross-sector efforts are needed to end zoonotic diseases such as rabies, transmitted from animals to humans.

Rabies elimination plans must include human and animal government agencies, veterinary and human health professionals, educators, scientists and community groups.

The Canine Rabies Blueprint’s Stepwise Approach towards Rabies Elimination is a roadmap for countries to help them develop plans and measure progress toward achieving rabies prevention, control and elimination. It integrates One Health principles to help countries become rabies-free.