Project
malawi
Malawi is among the world’s hotspots for rabies and this vicious disease poses a huge burden to the country.
Blantyre, the commercial capital in the south of Malawi, is the city where a single hospital reported the highest number of child rabies deaths anywhere in Africa.
We are going to make it the lowest.
2015
Together with our partner charity, the Blantyre SPCA, we launched our Malawi campaign in May 2015 and vaccinated more than 35,000 dogs in just 20 days, achieving a vaccination coverage of 70% across the dog population of Blantyre.
- Our powerful Mission Rabies app really came into its own, enabling Andy Gibson, our Research and Epidemiology manager to remotely guide all 8 teams ensuring at least 70% of the dog population was covered in all wards.
- After our hugely successful campaign in the city, our teams pushed on, vaccinating dogs in the surrounding Blantyre district, completing it in 101 days.
2016
2016 saw the expansion of Mission Rabies Malawi into 2 neighbouring districts, Zomba and Chiradzulu.
- Utilising international volunteers for 2 vaccination drives in Blantyre and Zomba cities, enabled us to vaccinate these densely populated areas with maximum efficiency.
- The local teams then stormed away in the rural areas, with an average of 9,000 dogs vaccinated per month.
The final 2016 numbers came in, 90,079 dogs in one year across the most challenging terrain yet, we were flying!
We are all about synergistic partnerships at Mission Rabies, here is how we are collaborating with other organisations in Malawi:
- Our sister charity, Worldwide Veterinary Service, will be providing veterinary infrastructure for the BSPCA by setting up a brand new veterinary clinic for the city and running training courses for local veterinarians and animal handlers.
- We established links to the authorities to set up a rabies surveillance network, making sure that every rabid dog is reported and our response teams can react to the situation, protecting the people and other animals in the area.
- Our successful education campaign and materials, educating children about the dangers of rabies and how to behave around dogs to prevent dog bites. During 2016 our education campaign reached more than 370,000 children in Malawi!
2017
2017 was a successful year for Mission Rabies in Malawi.
- Our teams vaccinated 98,761 dogs in 2017. We have worked again in Blantyre, Zomba and Chiradzulu. You can read more about the projects on our blog.
- 453,785 children where educated about rabies by our team members in the year 2017. Education is such an important tool for us and we are glad to see the effect it has.
2018
This year we will send our Mission Rabies teams to Blantyre and the lake districts again to ensure that the vaccination coverage maintains over 70% in the dog populations.
- Our education programme is active as well and our officers are busy reaching out to teach school children about rabies and bite prevention.
- Our Mission Rabies teams have already been busy this year doing surveys to prepare the vaccination drive that will follow later this year. Take a look at our blog to stay up-to-date.
For more information about how to get involved with our projects click here.
Volunteer Opportunities

Goa Vaccination Drive
Goa, India
October 2021
Join us as we head through the back streets of beautiful Goa delivering life-saving vaccines, to protect both the dogs and human communities they live alongside!
Suitability: | Vets, Vet Nurses, Vet Students, Vet Nurse Students, Non-Vets |

Uganda Vaccination Drive
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Western Uganda
June/July 2021
Join us in Uganda and be part of a team working to eliminate rabies along the beautiful Bwindi Impenetrable National Park Forest Corridor.
Carry out life-saving work, providing free rabies vaccinations to as many dogs as possible- ultimately protecting the dogs and the people who live alongside them!
Suitability: | Vets, Vet Nurses, Vet Students, Vet Nurse Students, Non-Vets |

sri lanka vaccination drive
Ja-Ela District
August 2021
Discover the true Sri Lanka by getting involved in the day to day running of a mass vaccination campaign and help us protect future generations from rabies!
We welcome all types of volunteers to join our teams, whether a vet, vet nurse, student or non-vet, you can play a crucial role in making a difference!
Suitability: | Vets, Vet Nurses, Vet Students, Vet Nurse Students, Non-Vets |

Tanzania vaccination drive
Meru District
January 2021
Join us as we return to North-Eastern Tanzania, where we will be continuing our fight to eliminate rabies from Meru District.
This project is an amazing opportunity to get fully involved in the challenge of mass vaccination; providing lifesaving protection for both the dogs and human communities living at the base of Mount Meru - Africa's fifth tallest mountain!
Suitability: | Vets, Vet Nurses, Vet Students, Vet Nurse Students, Non-Vets |

Ghana vaccination drive
Bosomtwe, Ghana
2021
We are very excited to be returning for the third year to our project in Ghana!
Join us as we vaccinate the dogs and protect the local communities living alonside beautiful Lake Bosomtwe. Discover the true Ghana by getting involved in the day to day running of a mass vaccination campaign and help us protect future generations from rabies!
Suitability: | Vets, Vet Nurses, Vet Students, Vet Nurse Students, Non-Vets |

Cambodia Vaccination Drive
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
November 2021
We will be returning to the vibrant, bustling capital of Phnom Penh, to take on our biggest challenge yet! Join us as we vaccinate the entire province of Phnom Penh - thats a target of 100,000 dogs in just 10 days!
This project is an amazing opportunity to get fully involved in the challenge of mass vaccination; providing lifesaving protection for both the dogs and human communities living within this incredible part of South East Asia.
Suitability: | Vets, Vet Nurses, Vet Students, Vet Nurse Students, Non-Vets |