Looking back at 2016, here are some details you may not know about malaria
- There were 216 million cases of malaria worldwide in 2016.
- Somewhere in the world, a child dies of malaria every 2 minutes.
- Just 15 countries are responsible for 80% of all malaria cases worldwide.
- 14 of these 15 countries are in Africa.
- Nigeria has the highest burden of malaria worldwide, responsible for over 27% of cases in 2016.
- The most effective treatment for malaria is the artemisin-based combination therapy (ACT).
- Seeing there are yet no efficacious vaccines, malaria control and elimination efforts relies on preventing transmission with the use of long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLINs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS).
- About US$2.7 billion was invested in malaria control and elimination in 2016 and 74% of that fund were spent in Africa.
- This amount was however only 41% of funds required for malaria elimination efforts that year and more funding is needed to accelerate progress towards malaria elimination.
The goal of the global efforts against malaria is to eliminate it and more countries are moving towards this goal, including the E-2020: 21 countries that show potential to eliminate malaria by 2020.