On World Rabies Day in 2024, the WHO and FAO will emphasize the need for swift, comprehensive action to prevent every rabies death.
Joint News Release, September 28, 2024, Jakarta -
In order to prevent human rabies deaths, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) are today urging widespread action throughout Indonesia. They stress that every human rabies death can be prevented.
The UN agencies are calling for more One Health initiatives, such as mass dog vaccination campaigns and integrated bite case management, in addition to personal safety measures.
A zoonotic virus that attacks the central nervous system, rabies is prevented by vaccination. Dogs are the primary vector of viral transmission, accounting for up to 99% of human cases of rabies, mostly through bites. Rabies is nearly always lethal as soon as clinical symptoms manifest. In Indonesia, rabies cases among children under 15 are common.
Data that is available to the public indicates that 71 Indonesians passed away from rabies between January 2024 and July 2024. With 19320 occurrences of possibly rabies-related animal bites in humans in 2023, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) is the most impacted among Indonesia's 26 rabies-endemic regions. As a result, 35 people died from rabies. NTT recorded 27 rabies deaths and 16,180 incidents of possibly rabid animal bites between January and July of 2024.
According to Dr. N. Paranietharan, WHO Representative to Indonesia, "communities in rabies-affected provinces must be empowered with both knowledge of and access to life-saving interventions." Nearly four out of every five Indonesians who passed away from rabies since the year 2023 did not seek medical attention after being bitten because they were ignorant of the necessity to do so. This needs to be handled immediately, firmly, and thoroughly.
If a dog bites someone, they should:
Cleanse the wound as soon as possible with soap and water. If you don't have access to water, soap, or detergent, alcohol can work just as well. If you have access to one, administer an iodine-containing or antiviral drug fifteen minutes after cleaning the wound. Seek medical attention from a qualified practitioner as soon as you can, and finish all recommended doses of the rabies vaccine.
WHO will keep helping the Ministry of Health in rabies-endemic provinces to raise public knowledge of personal safety and first aid precautions, strengthen the ability of health workers to handle bite cases, and improve access to medical institutions that provide anti-rabies vaccines.
WHO has been supporting the development of a social and behavior change campaign in NTT particularly, and in 2024 it has sponsored biting case management training for health workers in Pontianak, West Kalimantan.
The most economical and successful approach, however, is mass dog vaccination, which is backed by efficient dog population control, in order to prevent and eradicate human-dog rabies. It has been demonstrated on a global scale that a sustained dog vaccination coverage of 70% can lead to the control of canine rabies.
The country of Indonesia is moving closer to being rabies-free. FAO Representative for Indonesia and Timor-Leste Rajendra Aryal stated, "In order to further expedite this effort, FAO is supporting the Government of Indonesia in developing a strategic operational plan for rabies elimination in Java, Bali, West Nusa Tenggara, and NTT."
Targeting free-roaming dogs, an important intervention being tested in these locations is the oral rabies immunization. This attempts to solve obstacles in reaching these dog populations and is a supplement to conventional mass dog vaccination programs. Aryal continued, "FAO is still dedicated to assisting Indonesia in its efforts to control rabies."
In accordance with the worldwide "Zero by 30" policy, which focuses on both the animal and human health sectors, WHO and FAO will continue to assist Indonesia in its efforts to eradicate human rabies deaths by 2030.
By putting the plan into practice, the impacted nations will go closer to accomplishing Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3.3, which is to "end the epidemics of neglected tropical diseases by 2030," as well as SDG 3.8, which calls for universal health care.
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