WHO LAUNCHES STRATEGIES TO PREVENT DROWNING
More than 90% of deaths occur in
low- and middle-income countries
By Hope Mafaranga
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has launched a new technical package outlining seven proven strategies to help governments and communities reduce drowning deaths worldwide.
The package, known as PROTECT, was launched in Accra,
Ghana, to celebrate World Drowning Prevention Day, that took place on August
11, 2026, as the WHO warned that nearly 300,000 people die from drowning every
year globally.
Officials from the health ministry, works and
transport ministry and the water and environment ministry of Uganda and
Tanzania attended the launch.
This year’s World Drowning Prevention Day theme, “Unite
to turn the tide,” calls for coordinated action among governments, sectors
and communities to prevent drowning and save lives.
Drowning remains among the 10 leading causes of death
among children aged five to 14 years,
with incidents occurring in rivers, lakes, wells, domestic water storage
containers and swimming pools.
According to the WHO, more than 90% of drowning deaths
occur in low- and middle-income countries, making drowning a major public
health concern requiring stronger investment and coordinated action.
The package was launched in Ghana in recognition of
the country’s growing political commitment to drowning prevention and efforts
to strengthen water safety.
An estimated 1,100 people die from drowning in Ghana
every year, with children and young adults disproportionately affected. This
translates to about three deaths every day.
The launch is expected to reinforce Ghana’s leadership
in addressing drowning while encouraging other governments to adopt
evidence-based policies to protect communities at risk.
The global health agency also warned that climate
change is increasing drowning risks through more frequent extreme weather
events, including floods, storms and heatwaves.
Studies have shown a strong association between rising temperatures and drowning. In the UK, research found that drowning deaths increase by 7.2% for every 1°C rise in temperature.
The risk is also nearly five times higher on days when
temperatures exceed 25°C compared to days when temperatures are below 10°C.
“Every drowning is a tragedy, and most are
preventable,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director general.
Ghebreyesus said the seven PROTECT strategies give
countries practical, evidence-based approaches to prevent drowning, including
making water transport safer, teaching schoolchildren to swim and preparing
communities for floods.
“Drowning prevention isn’t the job of one ministry; it
belongs to everyone and the lives it saves are the reward,” he said.
The PROTECT package provides policymakers with
evidence-informed recommendations in seven interconnected areas: physical
infrastructure that promotes safe interaction with water, rescue and
resuscitation capabilities for bystanders and professional responders.
The package builds on more than a decade of
collaboration between the WHO, governments and partners to advance
evidence-based drowning prevention measures globally.
Dr Kelly Henning, who leads the public health
programme at Bloomberg Philanthropies, said the framework would help save lives
while building on progress already made by governments worldwide.
UGANDA’S TAKE
In Uganda, organisations are increasingly turning to
community-based approaches to reduce drowning, particularly among children and
fishing communities that depend on lakes and other water bodies for their
livelihoods.
Rozeta Acayo from Reach a Hand Uganda said the
organisation has initiated a campaign dubbed “Omanyi okuwuga?”, which
loosely translates to “Do you know how to swim?”, as part of efforts to raise
awareness about drowning prevention and equip communities with knowledge on
water safety.
“We have portable swimming pools and we have trained
instructors on how to prevent drowning,” she said.
She explained that the pools allow children to access
free swimming lessons within their communities.
Achayo said the programme also provides swimming and
water-safety instruction at open-water sites, targeting fishermen and children
who frequently engage in activities around water.
Jennifer Patterson, the communications director at
Global Health Advocacy Incubator, called for a broader approach to drowning
prevention that addresses systemic challenges, including climate change,
safety, infrastructure, economic conditions and health disparities.
She said drowning is still not widely viewed as
preventable, calling for a shift in how the issue is communicated.
“Drowning costs families and communities billions of
dollars each year. There are solution-based narratives and we need to hear from
each of you about what is happening in your communities, the successes you are
having, so that we are replacing incident-based reporting with value-based
reporting,” she said.
Patterson said stronger communication could also help
hold governments accountable for their commitments to drowning prevention,
including funding for life jackets.
Charles Okao, a communications and media consultant
for Drowning Prevention Uganda, said fishing and farming communities depend
heavily on lakes and other water sources for their daily livelihoods.
He said prevention messaging must recognise that
exposure to water is part of everyday life, including children travelling to
school or playing near water, while also addressing inadequate supervision and
climate-related risks.
Frederick Oporia, the executive director of the Centre
for Prevention of Trauma, Injury and Disability at Makerere University, said
Mayuge district continues to record the highest drowning death rate for both
fatal and non-fatal cases.
He said the district also ranks highest when
fatalities and survivors are combined.
Oporia noted that the 2018 survey recorded a drowning
rate of 26% per 100,000 population in Mayuge, partly attributed to rising water
levels.
Caroline Lukaszyk, a technical officer at the WHO,
said governments, UN agencies and development partners need to work together to
address the growing burden of drowning and its underlying risk factors.
She said the main mission of the drowning prevention
alliance is to promote global collaboration and strengthen coordination among
different sectors involved in preventing drowning.
