Global Drowning Research and Prevention
Drowning is the third leading cause of unintentional injury death worldwide, claiming an estimated 236,000 lives each year.1
Over 90% of drowning deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries, with children under the age of five at highest risk.2
CDC collaborates with the CDC Foundation and Bloomberg Philanthropies on global drowning work to confront this vast problem.
Bloomberg Philanthropies launched its Global Drowning Prevention Program in 2012. CDC, the CDC Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, and other partners aim to adapt and improve local drowning prevention measures by collecting and analyzing data to understand the specific causes of drowning. Learn more about this work.
Drowning death rates in the African region are estimated to be the highest in the world. Yet, data collection and surveillance for drowning in African countries are limited.3
In response, CDC partnered with the CDC Foundation and Bloomberg Philanthropies in 2018 to understand and prevent drowning in Uganda.
With technical assistance from CDC, CDC Foundation collaborated with Makerere University (Kampala, Uganda) to collect data from 60 districts in Uganda by accessing existing administrative records on drowning cases in district police offices, marine police detachments, fire and rescue detachments, and the largest mortuaries in those districts.
In-depth interviews were conducted with families, friends, and witnesses of people who drowned in 14 of those 60 districts. The information was used to determine how many people drowned, and under what circumstances.
The data collected will help improve our understanding of how drownings happen in Uganda and help inform a drowning prevention strategy for the country.
Read more about this research: Drowning in Uganda: examining data from administrative sources.
CDC partnered with the CDC Foundation and Bloomberg Philanthropies to conduct a similar study in Ghana.
In 2022, the study team and partners at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (Kumasi, Ghana) began collecting drowning data from 52 districts in Ghana.
- WHO Global Report on Drowning: Preventing a Leading Killer: This report provides current knowledge about drowning and drowning prevention and calls for a substantial scaling up of comprehensive efforts and resources to prevent drowning.
- WHO Preventing Drowning: An Implementation Guide: This guide provides practical steps to reduce drowning through 10 evidence-based interventions and strategies. It also highlights ways to strengthen drowning prevention interventions through public awareness and engagement.
- WHO Preventing Drowning: Practical Guidance for the Provision of Day Care, Basic Swimming and Water Safety Skills, and Safe Rescue and Resuscitation Techniques: This guide provides best practice recommendations for three interventions to prevent drowning that are implemented at the community level.
- World Health Organization (WHO). Drowning fact sheet
- World Health Organization (WHO). Global report on drowning: Preventing a leading killer
- Clemens T, Oporia F, Parker EM, et al. Drowning in Uganda: examining data from administrative sources. Injury Prevention 2022;28(1):9-15.