Malaria? What's new?

Blessing Amatemeso
Apr 26
2 min read

Updated: Apr 28

We've heard about malaria for decades. Mosquitoes, fever, bed nets, old story, right? Not quite. A lot has changed, and this World Malaria Day, it's worth paying attention.

A Vaccine Finally.

For a disease that has plagued humanity for millennia, a vaccine feels almost surreal. Two WHO-recommended malaria vaccines now exist, RTS,S and R21, both targeting P. falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite, and both primarily used in Africa where the burden is greatest. [WHO]
Where are they available? Countries currently offering malaria vaccines include Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Uganda, Mozambique, and over 20 others across sub-Saharan Africa. [WHO]
How long does protection last? The vaccines require at least three doses in infants, and a fourth dose extends protection for an additional one to two years. [Wikipedia]
Current vaccines offer modest, relatively short-lived protection, roughly one year, though research into longer-lasting options is actively underway. [NEMJ]

Here's the sobering reality check: in 2024, there were an estimated 282 million malaria cases and 610,000 malaria deaths across 80 countries.

Progress is real, even if incomplete. Since 2000, an estimated 2.3 billion malaria cases and 14 million deaths have been averted worldwide — including 1 million lives saved in 2024 alone. (WHO)

Since 2017, 17 countries have been certified malaria-free by WHO, with Georgia, Suriname, and Timor-Leste achieving that milestone in 2025

The New Threat No One Saw Coming

Just when progress seemed within reach, a new problem is growing. Partial resistance to artemisinin — the backbone of malaria treatment — has now been confirmed or suspected in at least 8 countries in Africa. [WHO]

Meanwhile, pyrethroid resistance has been confirmed in 48 countries, reducing the effectiveness of insecticide-treated bed nets, and the Anopheles stephensi mosquito, resistant to many commonly used insecticides, has now invaded 9 African countries, posing a serious new challenge to urban malaria control. [WHO]

So — same old malaria?

Not even close. The disease is evolving, the solutions are advancing, and the stakes have never been higher. A child dying every minute from a preventable disease in 2025 is not inevitable .

This World Malaria Day, the story is about what humanity decides to do next and what as individuals decide to do everyday.

PREVENTION IS KEY