Nigerian health experts and lawmakers are demanding urgent government intervention and local manufacturing of antivenom to curb the nearly 2,000 deaths caused by snakebites each year.
Health experts have urged the Federal Government to prioritize local antivenom production as Nigeria records 43,000 snakebite cases and nearly 1,900 deaths annually. Research shows 50% of health facilities lack the capacity to treat envenoming, while victims face costs between 180,000 and 250,000 Naira per dose prohibitive for those earning the 70,000 Naira minimum wage.
The crisis gained national attention following the death of singer Ifunanya Nwangene, 26, after a snakebite in Abuja last Saturday. Experts from the Toxinological Society of Nigeria described the situation as a neglected public health emergency. “Anti-snake venom is a scarce commodity… the process [for provision] is still in the pipeline,” stated Dr. Nicholas Amani of the Kaltungo Snakebite Hospital.
In response, the Senate on Tuesday demanded mandatory antivenom stocking in hospitals nationwide. Lawmakers and professors have called for immediate subsidies and free treatment at primary healthcare centers to prevent thousands of annual fatalities. “Unless we have this commitment and take it as a policy to protect Nigerians’ health, we will continue to have high fatality,” noted Professor Patricia Lar.
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