In a significant move toward improving health sector, Federal Minister for National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination Mustafa Kamal on Monday approved, in principle, the development of a National Rabies Prevention and Control Framework, citing growing concern over the increasing number of rabies infections and dog bite cases across Pakistan.
The decision was taken during a meeting with a delegation from the Indus Hospital and Health Network, led by its Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Abdul Bari Khan, which discussed a comprehensive nationwide strategy to prevent and control the disease.
Officials informed the minister that Pakistan lacked an effective national rabies surveillance system. According to estimates presented during the briefing, nearly 5,000 people die from rabies each year in the country, while hundreds of thousands of dog bite incidents are reported annually. Children and people living in rural and underserved urban areas were identified as the most vulnerable groups.
Mustafa Kamal directed that a National Technical Working Advisory Group be established to prepare the framework and coordinate nationwide efforts aimed at reducing the burden of the disease.
He also called for a nationwide public awareness campaign to educate people about rabies prevention, the need for immediate medical treatment following animal bites, and the importance of timely vaccination.
During the meeting, Dr. Abdul Bari Khan presented the minister with the Sindh Official Guidelines for Prevention of Human Rabies (2024), a document developed with the technical support of the Indus Hospital and Health Network.
The meeting followed the reporting of another suspected rabies case in Karachi. On July 10, a 28-year-old woman, Malookan Bibi, a resident of Khwaja Ajmer Nagri in North Karachi, was admitted to the emergency department of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre after developing symptoms consistent with the fatal viral disease.