WHO validates Bhutan for eliminating dog-transmitted human rabies
The World Health Organization (WHO) has validated Bhutan’s elimination of dog-transmitted rabies as a public health problem in the country. Bhutan is the first country in the WHO South-East Asia Region to achieve this success.
Rabies is a viral disease that is almost always fatal once clinical symptoms appear. However, rabies deaths are preventable. On one hand, vaccinating dogs curbs the disease at its source; on the other, prompt use of post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) stops the virus from reaching the central nervous system after a bite. PEP consists of thorough wound washing, administration of a course of human rabies vaccine and, when indicated, rabies immunoglobulins (RIG) injection.
Rabies is one of 21 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), which affect one billion people globally. As of September 2026, 65 countries had eliminated at least one NTD. Public education targeting both children and adults on dog behaviours, bite prevention, appropriate actions following a bite or scratch from a potentially rabid animal, and responsible pet ownership are essential components of effective rabies programmes.
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