Over the past 20 years, remarkable progress has been achieved in the fight against malaria. But this progress is under threat. Funding has stalled, vital tools are becoming less effective, shifting climate patterns are changing mosquito behavior and expanding malaria zones, and the COVD-19 pandemic has created new setbacks.
Children under five account for three-quarters of all deaths from malaria worldwide. It also poses serious risks to pregnant women, causing one in 10 maternal deaths in regions where malaria is endemic. Nearly all the 249 million infections and 608,000 deaths from malaria globally in 2022 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa.
If we act now, we can get ahead of the rapidly mutating malaria parasite and the mosquitoes that transmit the disease. We need a range of new and updated tools to consolidate hard won gains and confront the challenges of the future. This is where Unitaid has a vital and unique role to play, bridging the gap between the scientists, researchers and companies that develop new malaria-fighting tools and interventions, and the organizations, governments, and health workers that deliver them to people on the ground.
We work with communities to identify emerging challenges and underserved populations. We then invest in cutting-edge technologies and innovative approaches that strengthen the malaria response.
Market barriers often stall the development and uptake of novel tools and delivery strategies, leaving them unaffordable, unattainable or unusable where they are needed most. Together with our partners, our interventions tackle those barriers to improve the reach of malaria efforts globally.
We are advancing on all fronts, from novel spatial repellents to long-lasting drugs for vector control. Through rigorous research, we will continue to gather the evidence needed to demonstrate the effectiveness of these innovative approaches and ensure they are affordable and available everywhere they are needed.
Find out more about how Unitaid is working with partners and countries to confront the threat of malaria in our new Issue Brief.
Additional resources:
- Issue Brief: Unitaid and malaria
- Report: Antimalarial manufacturing in Africa: A call for regional action
- A photo story: Kenya pioneers a new tool in the fight against malaria
- A photo story: The communities at the heart of malaria prevention in Mozambique
Related news:
- First Nigerian manufacturer obtains WHO prequalification for key malaria prevention drug
- New Unitaid report shows manufacturing antimalarials in Africa is critical to fighting malaria
- New Nets Prevent 13 Million Malaria Cases in Sub-Saharan Africa
- Nearly three-quarters of a million young lives saved as seasonal malaria chemoprevention marks 10 years since start of first pilots