An increased rollout of World Health Organisation-recommended malaria vaccines helped prevent an estimated 170 million cases and one million deaths in 2024, according to the agency’s latest annual World Malaria Report.
The report states that since WHO approved the world’s first malaria vaccines in 2021, 24 countries have incorporated them into national immunisation programmes. The organisation says the expanded use of the vaccines marks one of the most significant advances in global malaria control in decades.
Seasonal malaria chemoprevention has also widened considerably. The intervention, which was reaching only 200,000 children in 2012, was implemented in 20 countries in 2024 and covered 54 million children.
The report notes progress toward malaria elimination, with 47 countries and one territory now certified malaria-free. Cabo Verde and Egypt achieved certification in 2024, while Georgia, Suriname and Timor-Leste followed in 2025.
Despite the gains, malaria continues to pose a major global health threat. WHO estimates there were 282 million cases and 610,000 deaths in 2024, around nine million more cases than the previous year.
The African region accounted for 95% of all deaths, most of them among children under the age of five.
The report warns that rising antimalarial drug resistance is undermining progress and remains a significant barrier to elimination efforts.
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said new tools, including vaccines, offered hope but cautioned that the fight against malaria remains fragile.
“New tools for prevention of malaria are giving us new hope, but we still face significant challenges,” he said. “Increasing numbers of cases and deaths, the growing threat of drug resistance and the impact of funding cuts all threaten to roll back the progress we have made over the past two decades.”
“However, none of these challenges is insurmountable. With the leadership of the most-affected countries and targeted investment, the vision of a malaria-free world remains achievable.”
The report also highlights slow progress toward reducing global malaria mortality, a key target of WHO’s Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016–2030. The 610,000 deaths recorded in 2024 translate to 13.8 deaths per 100,000 people, more than triple the global target of 4.5 deaths per 100,000.
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