WHO launches PROTECT package to curb global drowning deaths

The World Health Organization (WHO) unveiled a new technical package called PROTECT, comprising seven evidence‑based strategies to prevent drowning. The initiative was announced ahead of World Drowning Prevention Day on 25 July and was launched in Ghana, where an estimated 1,100 people die from drowning each year.

Drowning kills roughly 300,000 people annually, accounting for more than 90 % of deaths in low‑ and middle‑income countries and ranking among the top ten causes of death for children aged 5‑14. WHO Director‑General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “Every drowning is a tragedy, and most are preventable.” The seven PROTECT measures focus on safe water infrastructure, rescue and resuscitation capacity, occupational water safety, transport safety, swimming and water‑safety education, child‑care safeguarding, and flood‑preparedness.

The package stresses that drowning prevention requires coordinated action across health, education, transport, disaster‑risk management and other sectors. Climate change is heightening risk by increasing floods, storms and heatwaves, which in turn raise exposure to hazardous water sites. National bodies, such as Spain’s SESPAS and local rescue organisations in Italy and Argentina, are calling for national water‑safety strategies aligned with the WHO guidance.