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Achan arrived by ambulance after being bitten by a snake. It happened at night when Achan had gone to fetch water. She was attacked by a snake on her way. She was immediately taken to intensive care at the hospital in Abyei supported by Médecins Sans Frontières. She underwent surgery to remove necrotic tissue and was given an antidote.
 “The snake was very poisonous because shortly after the bite I felt itching and began to swell”.  
The woman has two children, one of whom came to the hospital with her because she is still breastfeeding. Achan’s mother also came with her. 
“I didn't see the snake because it was dark, but from the pain I immediately realised that it couldn't have been a common insect”.
Achan rests on her hospital bed following treatment from MSF teams, after being bitten by a snake on her leg, as she had gone to fetch water. One of her children came with her to the hospital, as Achan is still breastfeeding. Abyei, South Sudan, November 2025.
© Maurizio Debanne/MSF
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Updated 8 April 2026

A hidden health crisis, bites from venomous snakes make up to 2.7 million people sick each year. Up to nearly 140,000 people die, and a further 400,000 people can be left disfigured and/or disabled.

Despite having the highest mortality of all the 21 neglected tropical diseases recognised by the World Health Organization, investment in snakebite prevention and treatment remains severely underfunded and overlooked. 

MSF teams treated around 7,000 people for snakebite in 2024. However, many patients arrive too late for treatment; timely access to polyvalent antivenom and empowered health services – such as having treatment and trained medical staff at health posts and clinics, rather than just hospitals – can save lives.  

Understanding quickly which snake is responsible for a bite can also help improve antivenom treatment for patients. In collaboration with the University of Geneva, MSF teams have designed an artificial intelligence animal recognition software to help our colleagues who are not snake specialists distinguish venomous snakes from common snakes, and. The tool has been trained with more than 380,000 photos to recognise snake species. 

In Ethiopia's Amhara region, barriers to timely healthcare severely impact patients with life-threatening, time-sensitive neglected tropical diseases such as snakebite.  
 
Most of our patients’ testimonies highlight critical obstacles: insecurity along travel routes, transportation costs unaffordable to most, and initial recourse to traditional remedies. 
 
These delays can lead to preventable complications or deaths.  
 
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has provided quality medical care for snakebite and kala-azar at its Abdurafi centre since 2003, serving migrant farm workers and local communities.  
 
As we celebrate World Neglected Tropical Diseases Day, we call upon all relevant parties to ensure safe and unimpeded access to healthcare, allowing patients to obtain immediate life-saving treatment for time-sensitive diseases and preventing avoidable fatalities.
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Barriers to snakebite treatment

How barriers can be life-threatening for snakebite treatment

In Ethiopia's Amhara region, barriers to timely healthcare severely impact patients with life-threatening, time-sensitive neglected tropical diseases, such as snakebite.

Most of our patients’ testimonies highlight critical obstacles: insecurity along travel routes, transportation costs unaffordable to most, and initially using traditional medicines.

These delays can lead to preventable complications or deaths.

MSF F2F World Challenge 2026

Welcome to the dedicated F2F World Challenge Page

From 29 June to 5 July 2026, F2F fundraising teams across the MSF movement will go head-to-head in a friendly, high-energy global challenge. 

What’s the mission? 🎯 Our goal is to recruit 7'500 new monthly donors in just one week. Equivalent to 1.3 million euros of annual income. Imagine the impact that could have for our patients around the world! With your passion, teamwork, and creativity, we believe this can be an unforgettable moment for fundraising at MSF.
Rabiu, a 20-year-old noma survivor, from Raba, Sokoto state, plays darts in the courtyard of the Sokoto Noma Hospital. ‘This is the first time I am coming to this hospital. At the beginning I refused, but my elder sister pushed me and brought me here’. He came with his brother Bello, who remembers: ‘He started getting herbal medication at home. His face had a boil, and a hot metal was used to break the boil. The sore was removed and it healed. Two others came out and the same thing was done.’ May 4, 2023.
Rabiu (right), a Noma survivor, plays darts in the courtyard of the Sokoto Noma hospital. Rabiu received reconstructive surgery from an MSF medical team. Sokoto, Nigeria, May 2023. 
© Fabrice Caterini/Inediz

We want this excitement to spread beyond our F2F community — to light up the whole office with energy and pride!

Leaderboard

Goal: €1,300,000 of annual income

How can your section get involved?

  • 💥 Shadow a canvasser in the field – get a glimpse of the action (and maybe even sign up a donor!)
  • 💥 Cheer on your fundraising team – your encouragement makes a difference.
  • 💥 Rally your office – every new donor brings us closer to our goal!
  • 🏆 The winning office will earn not only eternal glory — but also a celebration moment for the entire team!
  • 💥Record a testimonial while working alongside the F2F team and win your team an extra point towards the competition!
  • MSF Argentina
  • MSF Australia
  • MSF Austria~
  • MSF Belgium
  • MSF Chile
  • MSF Colombia
  • MSF Finland
  • MSF France
  • MSF Germany
  • MSF Hong Kong
  • MSF Japan
  • MSF Netherlands
  • MSF New Zealand
  • MSF Norway
  • MSF Poland
  • MSF Portugal
  • MSF South Korea
  • MSF Spain
  • MSF Switzerland
  • MSF Taiwan
  • MSF UK
  • MSF Uruguay
  • MSF USA
Group photo ICCM team: (front) Christophe, Awa, Rigini, (Back) Chol, Kat, Charles, Martine

The MSF integrated community case management team in Abyei. From left to right: Front – Christopher, Awa, Regina. Back – Chol, Hamada, Kat, Charles, Marteen. South Sudan, August 2023.

© Sean Sutton/Panos Pictures
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Mazim (on the right), 12, plays football against his two little brothers, with the ball they made with a sock filled with plastic bags. Mazim is the eldest of 6 siblings. He’s from El-Geneina, the capital of West Darfur. As hundreds of thousands of other children, he has fled Sudan to Chad with his family, following the outbreak of the war in April 2023. For over a year now, he’s living in Adré transit camp. 
18-07-2024 | Adré transit camp | Eastern Chad
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From 29 June to 5 July 2026, F2F fundraising teams across the MSF movement will go head-to-head in a friendly, high-energy global challenge.
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Snakebite

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