A two-year-old toddler who was bitten by a zebra cobra snake at Elisenheim just outside Windhoek last week, has died.

Deon Heunis de Wet died in a private clinic in the capital, where he was admitted on Thursday last week.

His father, Louw de Wet, confirmed Deon's death on his Facebook page yesterday morning.

"God het ons seun huis toe gevat. Hy is nou by sy ware Vader waar hy al die liefde van God se Koninkryk beleef. Dankie vir Sy wonderwerk," he wrote. In a brief interview with The Namibian, De Wet said his son touched more people around the world than anyone he knew would in a lifetime.

The father also said that Deon was bitten while he was sleeping around 21h00.

He said the family was planning to launch an anti-venom trust fund in honour of his son, adding that he was offering his son's purpose to God for the greater good and purpose of life.

"We will defeat venom and restore life," De Wet said. Health minister Bernard Haufiku yesterday said about 300 people die of snake bites in Namibia every year and that 80% of them are subsistence farmers and cattle herders who have no access to prompt and effective medical care.

"Their families bury them quietly and with little or no support or even just sympathy from the public and especially social media," he said.

According to the African Snakebite Institute, the zebra cobra is found in central Namibia and northwards into Angola.