Newsletter Issue 65

There is less than a month to go before that major day for raising awareness against the world’s deadliest Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) - rabies. World Rabies Day (September 28th) is nearing and while COVID-19 still seems like the Big Bad Wolf scaring everyone, rabies continues to be the wicked Cruella de Vil consistently lurking in the background.

Rabies work in the Philippines came to a grinding halt when COVID-19 struck, but through perseverance and dedication, the saviors – our human and animal health workers - on the ground are back to saving lives from rabies. This was only possible with personal protective equipment like masks and disinfectant. Read how GARC helped kickstart activities again and how you can ensure that people at risk of rabies continue to receive life-saving treatment.

Through close partnership and collaboration, GARC and the WHO have worked together to help ease the burden of data reporting. A specialised “Data reporting app” has been installed into the Rabies Epidemiological Bulletin that will enable government focal persons to easily complete their rabies reporting requirements to the WHO with the click of a button!

Vaccinating dogs is critical to achieving rabies elimination, but it is also important to be able to showcase efforts and success. Lilongwe SPCA (Malawi) shares their experiences with the GARC Data Logger (GDL) and how it has helped save time and money, enabling them to reach more dogs and save more lives.

Read the personal account of a local rabies champion in Algeria about how she used the GARC Education Platform (GEP) to help save lives from rabies. We read about the key roles of education in rabies elimination and how her activities have helped her community and her organization.

With schools staying closed and millions of children worldwide missing out on critical education, many schools have gone digital. To adapt, one of GARC’s education programs has worked with partners to adapt a storybook about rabies into an animated video. Through collaboration, the video will reach millions more children, educating them to help End Rabies Now.