Ghana has taken a bold step toward pharmaceutical self-reliance with the market authorization of the country’s first locally manufactured anti-snake venom, a breakthrough revealed by Dr. Sodzi Sodzi Tettey, CEO of the National Vaccine Institute (NVI), during the 9th J.E.A. Mills Leadership Lecture Series.
Dr. Tettey described the development as “a significant national achievement,” noting that Academic City Life Sciences Group has been cleared by Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority to produce the serum at scale. “This anti-serum will target up to eight different snake species and is expected to save thousands of lives annually,” he said.
Snakebite-related complications are a persistent cause of injury and death in rural Ghana. “By producing affordable, multi-species-targeted anti-venom domestically, we are building health security where it’s needed most,” Dr. Tettey emphasized.
The anti-serum project is part of a broader public-private partnership model backed by the Ghanaian government, with the National Vaccine Institute coordinating technology transfers from global partners to support local capacity. The partnership includes the European Union, GIZ, and African universities.
“This marks not just a scientific breakthrough but a humanitarian milestone,” Dr. Tettey stated. “We are proving that Ghana can manufacture solutions to our own public health emergencies.”
Source: Ivy Setordjie
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