NEW DELHI, Dec 4 — Malaria infected an estimated 282 million people and killed 610,000 worldwide in 2024, according to the World Health Organization’s annual World Malaria Report, which warns that rising drug resistance poses a serious threat to global elimination efforts.
While WHO-recommended malaria vaccines helped prevent roughly 170 million cases and one million deaths in 2024 — about nine million more than in 2023 — the disease continues to disproportionately affect young children. An estimated 95 percent of all malaria deaths occurred in the African region, with most victims under the age of five.
India accounted for 73.3 percent of all malaria cases in the WHO South-East Asia Region and 88.7 percent of regional deaths, underscoring the country’s continued malaria burden.
The report shows that progress on reducing malaria deaths — a key target of the Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016–2030 — remains far off track. It highlights that antimalarial drug resistance has now been confirmed or suspected in at least eight African countries, with early signs of reduced efficacy in the partner drugs used in artemisinin-based combination therapies.
Other threats are also undermining control efforts. Growing prevalence of malaria parasites with pfhrp2 gene deletions is weakening the reliability of rapid diagnostic tests, and widespread pyrethroid resistance in 48 countries is reducing the effectiveness of insecticide-treated nets — one of the most important malaria prevention tools.
Complicating matters further, Anopheles stephensi — a mosquito species resistant to many commonly used insecticides — has now spread to nine African countries, raising major concerns for malaria control in densely populated urban areas.
Still, progress continues in some regions. To date, 47 countries and one territory have been certified malaria-free by the WHO. Cabo Verde and Egypt earned malaria-free certification in 2024, while Georgia, Suriname, and Timor-Leste were certified in 2025.
Since approving the world’s first malaria vaccines in 2021, the WHO says 24 countries have now incorporated them into routine immunization programs.
“New tools for prevention of malaria are giving us new hope, but we still face significant challenges,” said WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “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.”
The report also highlights external pressures — including extreme weather events, shifting rainfall patterns, conflict, and instability — that are contributing to outbreaks and limiting access to care. Global funding for malaria programs has also plateaued over the last decade, restricting the reach of life-saving interventions.
“However, none of the challenges is insurmountable,” Dr. Tedros said. “With the leadership of the most-affected countries and targeted investment, the vision of a malaria-free world remains achievable.” (Source: IANS)
