article · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Snakebite envenoming is a substantial yet neglected public health challenge in Zambia, disproportionately affecting rural and vulnerable populations. Between 2020 and 2025, national health data recorded 98,250 snakebite cases, showing wide geographic variation across provinces. Zambia has advanced by integrating snakebite management into the Neglected Tropical Diseases Master Plan 2022 to 2026, incorporating reporting into the national health information system, and releasing national treatment guidelines. However, severe obstacles persist. These include limited availability and inequitable distribution of quality-assured antivenom, inadequate training for healthcare workers, weak rural referral capacity, and a lack of dedicated financing. Addressing these gaps requires policy integration, mandatory clinical training, stronger surveillance, targeted budgetary allocations, collaboration with traditional healers, and greater investment in local research to lower mortality and disability.
Snakebite envenoming causes severe mortality, long-term disability, and socioeconomic hardship among rural communities. Evaluating national health systems and policy implementation highlights the operational barriers, such as supply shortages and inadequate training, that must be resolved to protect vulnerable populations and align with global health targets for neglected tropical diseases.
The findings highlight an urgent public health need for reliable, quality-assured antivenom procurement and improved supply chain distribution for health authorities in Zambia. The work focuses on policy, system infrastructure, and clinical training guidelines rather than a specific commercial product, indicating that market opportunities centre on pharmaceutical supply and diagnostic surveillance tools rather than immediate proprietary technologies.
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Snakebite envenoming (SBE) remains a neglected public health challenge in Zambia, particularly among rural and other vulnerable populations.Although the country has made important progress in recognising and responding to SBE, significant gaps continue to hinder effective prevention, timely treatment, surveillance, and long-term control. This paper examines the current policy and health-system response to SBE in Zambia, with particular attention to national surveillance, existing policy frameworks, recently developed treatment guidelines, and persistent implementation challenges. National health information data indicate that 98,250 snakebite cases were reported between 2020 and 2025, withsubstantial geographic variation across provinces. Zambia has taken important steps through the inclusion of SBE within the Neglected Tropical Diseases Master Plan 2022–2026, integration of snakebite reporting into the national health information system, and development and rollout of national guidelines for the prevention and management of snakebite. However, implementation remains constrained by inadequate healthcare worker training, limited availability and inequitable distribution of quality-assured antivenom, weak surveillance and reporting systems, inadequate rural referral capacity, limited community awareness, insufficient locally generated research, and the absence of dedicated and sustainable financing for SBE programmes. To address these challenges, the paper proposes stronger integration of SBE into national health policies and strategic plans, improved surveillance and data systems, mandatory training of healthcare workers, equitable antivenom procurement and distribution, expanded community engagement and collaboration with traditional healers, dedicated budgetary allocations, and increased investment in locally led research. Elevating SBE to anational public health priority through coordinated, multisectoral and sustainable action is essential to reducing snakebite-related mortality, disability, and socioeconomic consequences in Zambia and advancing progress towards the World Health Organization's 2030 targets
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DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.22250932
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