The United Nations (UN) on Sunday, July 25, 2021, marked the world’s first-ever World Drowning Prevention Day.
The global organisation dedicated this day for the global advocacy of drowning prevention in April this year through a resolution, moving towards a more sustainably developed world.
World Drowning Day serves as an opportunity to highlight impact that drowning can leave on families and communities. It also aims at offering life-saving solutions to prevent such disasters.
The UN data mentions that more than 90% of global drowning deaths take place in lakes, wells, rivers, domestic water storage containers in low- and middle-income countries, with children and adolescents especially in rural areas being disproportionately affected.
Some of the preventative measures announced by the UN include providing safe places away from water sources for pre-school children with capable childcare, such as creches.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, July 25, 2021 to mark the day, the World Health Organisation said every year, drowning claims the lives of at least 236,000 people, and that “it’s one of the 10 causes of death for people aged one-24 years.”
