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Fort-Liberté, 30 June 2025.- The Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development (MARNDR), with the support of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) and the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), officially launched on Monday, 23 June, in Fort-Liberté, a canine vaccination campaign to immunize 140,000 dogs against rabies. This operation, involving 17 municipalities in four departments of the country, will mobilize 240 field teams to break the chain of transmission of the rabies virus in Haiti.
Breaking the rabies transmission chain and effectively protecting human populations: this is the ambition of the new canine vaccination campaign launched by MARNDR in collaboration with the WHO/OPS and the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The launch ceremony was attended by local authorities, representatives of partner institutions and members of civil society.
The campaign tackles a major public health issue: rabies, a deadly viral disease, remains a persistent threat in Haiti, especially in rural areas where interactions between stray dogs and populations are very frequent. To respond, the Ministry plans to vaccinate approximately 140,000 dogs, or between 70 and 80 per cent of the canine population estimated at 175,000 individuals in the targeted areas.
This initiative covers 17 municipalities in four departments: North, North-West, Artibonite and Centre. It relies on the logistical mobilization of 240 teams, each composed of two veterinary or community agents, to identify, capture if necessary, and vaccinate dogs.
The authorities hope that such vaccination coverage will help eliminate canine rabies, the main source of human infection, in the coming years. They also call for the cooperation of citizens and local and regional authorities to facilitate the work of the teams and ensure the success of the operation.
Through this coordinated action, Haiti is part of the regional momentum of PAHO/WHO to eradicate rabies by 2030. An achievable ambition, according to experts, provided that the effort is sustained, surveillance systems are strengthened, and people are made aware of preventive behaviour.
WA
