Egypt’s National Anti-Rabies Campaign: A New Era for Stray Animal Management

The “Egypt Free of Rabies 2030” program, launched by Egypt’s Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation under Minister Alaa Farouk, officially began its first field phase on 6 Tuesday, January 2026. 

The program was inaugurated in the Ain Shams district of Cairo, where veterinary teams started vaccinating and sterilizing stray dogs as part of the nationwide campaign against rabies. 

Farouk has emphasized a shift from merely managing crises to addressing the root causes of the problem through internationally recognized animal welfare standards. 

In the first phase of this nationwide campaign, veterinary teams achieved remarkable results by vaccinating 293 free-roaming dogs and transferring an additional 25 for surgical sterilization. 

This “catch-neuter-vaccinate-release” approach aims to reduce the stray population and ensure that treated animals are returned to their original habitats, supporting ecological balance and preventing unvaccinated dogs from re-entering these areas.

Moreover, the  program intends to manage an estimated 10 to 11 million stray dogs through a structured plan that involves the construction of 12 shelters on the outskirts of major cities, including Cairo, Giza, Beheira, and Gharbiya. 

These facilities will be designed according to scientific standards and staffed by specialized veterinary teams to ensure the humane treatment of these animals.

The programme is being implemented in successive phases under the national Rabies-Free Egypt 2030 strategy. The first field phase will be focused on anti-rabies vaccination, sterilization, and shelter transfer operations. 

The initiative is backed by substantial recruitment efforts, planning to hire around 2,500 veterinarians to oversee various aspects of the program. 

To complement its field operations, the General Administration for Veterinary Guidance has launched an intensive public awareness campaign. 

This initiative targets residents of Ain Shams and beyond, focusing on the importance of safe interactions with free-roaming dogs and the prevention of zoonotic diseases. 

As the initiative expands nationwide, it sets a precedent for animal welfare and for public health management to pave the way for a safer and more responsible coexistence between humans and dogs in urban environments.