The Nigerian Senate has moved decisively to curb the rising tide of preventable deaths caused by snakebites, mandating that all public and private hospitals across the federation must stock anti-snake venom and other essential antidotes. In a plenary session held on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, the upper legislative chamber directed the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to enforce new national guidelines that make the availability of these life-saving drugs a prerequisite for hospital licensing and accreditation. The resolution comes in the wake of the heart-wrenching death of a budding artiste, Ifunanya Nwangene, who passed away on Saturday, January 31, 2026, after suffering a snakebite in Abuja.
The motion, titled “Urgent Need for the Federal and State Governments to ensure adequate stocking, availability and access to life-saving antidotes and emergency medicines in Public and Private Hospitals across Nigeria,” was sponsored by Senator Idiat Oluranti Adebule (APC, Lagos West). In her lead debate, Senator Adebule expressed grave concern that the country continues to lose citizens to treatable medical emergencies simply because health facilities lack the necessary rapid-response medications. She highlighted that the death of Ms. Nwangene, a promising soprano singer and architect, was a grim reminder of the systemic gaps in Nigeria’s emergency healthcare preparedness.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio, presiding over the session on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, underscored the urgency of the matter, noting that the scarcity of anti-venom is a national embarrassment that disproportionately affects the vulnerable. Supporting the motion, Senator Sunday Karimi (APC, Kogi West) described the singer’s death as “needless,” arguing that no Nigerian should die from a snakebite in a modern capital city due to the unavailability of antidotes. The lawmakers further resolved that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) must ensure the procurement and quality assurance of affordable anti-venoms to prevent the market from being flooded with ineffective substitutes.
The tragedy that sparked this legislative action occurred when Ifunanya Nwangene was bitten by a snake at her residence in the Federal Capital Territory. Despite being rushed to medical facilities, reports indicate that delays in accessing the specific anti-venom required for her treatment contributed to her sudden demise. Her death has ignited a firestorm of public outrage, with citizens questioning how such a scarcity could exist in the nation’s capital. In response to the outcry, the Senate has also urged the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development to enforce building codes that require the installation of non-return valves in drainage systems to prevent reptiles from entering residential homes.
