Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Vietnam needs to adopt lessons learned and workclosely with local governments to ensure fewer deaths from rabies.

For World Rabies Day 2022 (September 28), a joint event in Ben Tre province washeld to highlight the commitment to the 'Zero by 30' goal, review Vietnam'sNational Rabies Control Programme and discuss opportunities for supportingincreased vaccination in dogs.

The event was the result of collaboration between the Ministry of Health, theMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and southern Bến Tre Province'sPeople's Committee, along with the World Health Organization (WHO)Representative Office for Vietnam, the Food and Agriculture Organization of theUnited Nations (FAO) in Vietnam, and the United States Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention (US CDC).

This year's theme is 'One Health, Zero Deaths', leveraging the concept of 'OneHealth' that is increasingly entrenched in disease control programmes. Recentexamples, such as COVID-19 and antimicrobial resistance, have shown the worldthat the health of people, animals, and the environment are inextricably linkedand interdependent.

The spirit behind this year's theme encourages collaboration, partnership, anda joint approach toward rabies elimination, in line with the "Zero by 30:Global Strategic Plan for the elimination of dog-mediated human rabies deathsby 2030".

The global strategic plan was jointly adopted by WHO, FAO, the WorldOrganisation for Animal Health (OIE), and the Global Alliance for RabiesControl (GARC) in 2018.

In Vietnam, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment and local governments, with support from these internationalpartners, have been working together to implement the National Programme onRabies Prevention and Control.

While some progress has been made over the past ten years, Vietnam has reported70 to 100 human deaths from rabies each year.

In the first eight months of this year, the country reported 40 human deaths in16 cities and provinces nationwide, with the most cases reported in Ben Tre (12cases), Kien Giang (5 cases) and Gia Lai (4 cases).

Despite a significant decrease in rabies deaths in some provinces, the numberof deaths increased in 20 provinces between 2017-2021 compared to 2011-2016.

On average, every year, about 400,000 people bitten by dogs and cats need arabies vaccine, at an estimated cost of more than 300 billion VND per year.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, a recent surveyin 13 cities and provinces across the country questioned 1,248 dog owners andtested samples from 214 dogs suspected of carrying rabies.

As a result, the virus was found in 100 samples, accounting for 46.7% of totaltests.

Agricultural ministry statistics show that there are nearly seven million dogsacross Vietnam, but only 40% are vaccinated.

Only 13 localities, or 20%, have over 70% vaccination rates.

Most of the rabid dogs are unvaccinated street dogs. In many cases, dog ownersdo not register their pets and let them outside without a muzzle.

Continued support

Reducing human deaths from rabies caused by dogs has been a critical goal andchallenge for many countries in recent decades.

According to WHO, about 59,000 people die a year from rabies, and more than 10million people must be vaccinated.

Vietnam is committed to achieving the 2030 goal of eliminating human deathsfrom dog-transmitted rabies by renewing the National Programme on the Controland Elimination of Rabies 2022-2030.

The WHO, FAO, and US CDC restated their continuing support to the Government ofVietnam in developing essential policies and mechanisms to reduce deaths.

Observing World Rabbies Day 2022, Acting WHO Representative in Vietnam SocorroEscalante emphasised the need for strong commitment and the targeting ofpriority areas to eliminate deaths by 2030.

"Strengthening political commitment to ensure access, availability andaffordability to proven interventions such as safe, effective andquality-assured vaccines are critical to saving lives and ensuring a One Healthapproach to eliminating rabies," she said.

"Strong coordination between animal, human health, and other sectors isvital to ensure prevention and control programmes are efficiently andeffectively managed," she added.

Dr Rémi Nono Womdim, FAO Representative in Vietnam, said: "There isincreasing international and high-level political support for One Health as asustainable solution to combat threats such as rabies. Dog vaccination is themost cost-effective single intervention to protect humans from contractingrabies. By working together using the One Health approach, to increase rabiesvaccination coverage in animals to reach at least 70%, we can break thetransmission of rabies to humans and accelerate the progress toward the 'Zeroby 30' goal."

Dr Lindsay Kim, Global Health Security Programme director, US CDC office in Vietnam,said: "To improve canine vaccination coverage, we need to ensure rabiesvaccine availability, accessibility, and affordability (3A)."

"Furthermore, strengthening rabies surveillance using the One Healthapproach and integrating it with the event-based surveillance programmecurrently implemented and advocated by the Ministry of Health should also befocused to get closer to the 'Zero by 30' goal," Lindsay Kim said.

The Government, particularly at the local level, is recommended to prioritiseand increase resources for managing dog populations, vaccinating dogs, andproviding post-exposure prophylaxis for those bitten by dogs. FAO, WHO and USCDC commit to providing ongoing technical support to Vietnam as they worktogether to end human deaths from dog-mediated rabies in Vietnam./.