Kenya takes lead in keeping deadly rabies at bay in Africa

Dog after vaccination in Makueni County recently. (Photo:Sarah Cleveland)

As the world marked this year’s World Rabies Day, celebrated on September 28, every year, Kenya launched her “Strategy for the Elimination of Human Rabies by 2030”, effectively making her the first African country to embark on a journey to realising Louis Pasteur’s (famous for inventing vaccines against rabies and anthrax, and milk preservation through pasteurisation) 129 year-old vision of ridding the world of the deadly rabies disease.

Kenya’s strategy for eliminating rabies is simple: vaccinate at least 70 per cent of the dog population annually - for at least three consecutive years, and the disease will be eliminated not only in dogs, but also in humans and wildlife.

It is an attractive concept to controlling infectious diseases; control the disease at the animal level (in this case the domestic dog) and free humans from the scourge.

One may rightfully question why, if the solution was that simple, it took Kenya and other African countries long to eliminate the disease, yet an effective vaccine against dog rabies and an effective vaccine for treating any humans suffering bites from suspected rabid animals has existed for years.

Kenya’s commitment to ridding herself of the rabies menace, and her success in making this happen is being closely watched by fellow African countries and the world. There are growing calls for the world to act towards stopping unnecessary and avoidable deaths due to rabies.

The costs for rabies elimination are not prohibitive and should be affordable even for governments with limited resources. This does not necessarily require donor funds; affected countries and counties can, with proper planning, handle these themselves.

The argument for this is simple; it is far cheaper to control rabies in the dog than offering post-exposure vaccination to people with bite wounds.

Vaccinating a dog costs less than Sh100 while full treatment for a person bitten by a rabid dog is up to Sh15,000.

For example, the County Executive for Health in Makueni County Dr Andrew Mutava has argued that he spends up to Sh24 million annually on anti-rabies vaccines for the more than 2,000 patients who report to health facilities in Makueni with bite wounds, and if half these monies were directed to dog rabies vaccination, his ministry and county at large would not only be saving human lives but would also make substantial savings to the health sector.

This approach of coordinated health and veterinary sector collaboration is paramount, if we are to win the battle against diseases that jump from animals to man.

Kenya has realised this and offered leadership to the rest of Africa and the world by establishing one of the first effective inter-ministerial Zoonotic Disease Unit, and which has spearheaded the strategic path towards a rabies-free Kenya.

Professional bodies such as the Kenya Veterinary Association and the Kenya Medical Association, and research institutions and universities must work together to defeat rabies. They have the tools, they have skills, they must act.

A rabies-free Kenya is now within reach; the National and County governments must seize the opportunity, treat Rabies as a health priority and work together towards its elimination; they owe it to the thousands of people who are at a constant risk of rabies to listen, to learn and to act.

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