The Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ), also known as the ombudsman, has ordered Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) Director General Erustus Kanga to release statistics on snakebite-related deaths from 2022 to date within 21 days. Non-compliance will lead to recommendations for his criminal prosecution under the Access to Information Act, 2016. The information is required to support a Kenyan's petition in the Senate on public health and administrative accountability.
The Commission on Administrative Justice issued a notice on April 22, 2026, ordering the Kenya Wildlife Service to release a statistical summary of all snakebite-related deaths. "The commission has ordered the Director General of KWS to release the information on the statistical summary of all snakebite-related deaths from 2022 to the date of the order within 21 days," the ombudsman stated in the notice.
Non-compliance will prompt the commission to recommend criminal prosecution of Kanga under section 28 of the Access to Information Act, 2016. The commission affirmed its jurisdiction to review KWS's decision, stressing that public entities must maintain and disclose records upon request unless valid exemptions apply.
The requested data supports a September 2025 Senate petition by three petitioners from Machakos County seeking government action to end snakebite deaths. They asked for death figures since 2022, which KWS did not provide. In September 2025, the commission wrote to KWS requesting an Institutional Report, but the response failed to address the statistics.
Reports indicate nearly 20,000 snakebites occur annually in Kenya, resulting in 1,000 to 4,000 deaths. Counties with the highest incidences include Baringo, Kilifi, Kitui, Tana River, and Samburu.