Nigeria has recorded about 15,000 to 20,000 cases of snakebite every year.
Minister of State, Federal Ministry of Health Olorunnimbe Mamora announced that out of the figure, about 2000 people are killed and between 1,700 and 2,000 people have one leg or arm amputated to save their lives following a snakebite.
He stated this at a ministerial press briefing marking the 2021 International Snakebite Awareness Day (ISBAD), in Abuja.
It was reported that since 2018, International Snakebite Awareness Day had been commemorated on September 19, representing an opportunity for Nigerians to raise awareness of one of the world’s biggest hidden health crises.
Mamora added that each year, about 5.4 million people are bitten by a snake globally, of whom 2.7 million are injected with venom, adding that snakebite “poisoning”, known as envenomation, had long been a public health problem in Nigeria, especially in rural areas.
In his remarks, the Programme Manager of the Snake Bite Envenomation Programme, Fatai Oyediran, said that the International Snakebite Awareness Day, was meant to sensitise the populace on how to prevent the phenomenon.
