World Drowning Prevention
On July 25, World Drowning Prevention Day, we remember lives lost due to drowning and aim to increase knowledge of how to stay safe in and around water. Anyone can drown, but no one should. Drowning can be prevented.
Drowning is the third leading cause of unintentional injury death globally with over 235,000 estimated annual drowning deaths worldwide. This adds up to over 2.5 million deaths over the past decade. The estimated drowning death rate in the WHO Africa Region is the second highest in the world, estimated to be more than twice as high as the rate in the Americas.
CDC recently collaborated on a groundbreaking study looking at fatal and non-fatal drowning in Ghana, in partnership with the CDC Foundation and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and with funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies.
Researchers in Ghana identified drowning cases from administrative records data and individual interviews in communities. The study team worked with Ghana Health Service, Ghana Police Service, Ghana National Disaster Management Organization, and other local organizations to access administrative records and conduct comprehensive reviews of drowning cases. Researchers also worked with community leaders and community health workers to identify additional drowning cases at the community level, including those that may not have been reported to governmental authorities. Data collection occurred in 52 districts that were randomly selected from Ghana’s 260 districts, resulting in a nationally representative sample of Ghana’s population, geography, and diversity of water bodies. The approach resulted in a more thorough understanding of the burden and circumstances of fatal and non-fatal drowning in Ghana.
Prior to the Ghana study, CDC collaborated with the CDC Foundation and Makerere University, with funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies, on a similar study in Uganda. The Uganda study described the burden and circumstances of drowning in a sample of lakeside and non-lakeside districts in the country. The results led to the development of the first National Water Safety Strategy in Uganda.
Learn more about CDC’s work in international drowning prevention.