Experts from the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health said yesterday Nigeria recorded over 24 million malaria cases within nine months in 2025—surpassing previous yearly totals and underscoring the scale of the malaria crisis.
Alongside DR Congo, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Mozambique, they stated that Nigeria accounts for nearly half of all global infections. They said this during a news conference organised by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health on World Malaria Day 2026.
The global health experts warned against the resurgence of the disease, linking the spike to funding cuts, drug resistance, and evolving mosquito threats that could reverse decades of progress.
Prof. Jane Carlton, a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor and Director of the Malaria Research Institute at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said malaria continues to rank among the world’s deadliest infectious diseases, with an estimated 280 million cases and 600,000 deaths globally.
Children under five remain the most vulnerable, particularly across sub-Saharan Africa where the burden is heaviest. “Malaria is not just persisting—it is resurging in dangerous ways,” one of the experts warned, pointing to growing resistance to antimalarial drugs, declining effectiveness of insecticide-treated bed nets, and the spread of invasive mosquito species.
Despite these challenges, William Moss, a Professor in the Departments of Epidemiology, International Health and Molecular Microbiology and Immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, highlighted signs of progress.
Nearly 50 countries have now been declared malaria-free, while new vaccines are offering hope. The RTS, S, and R21 vaccines, in particular, have significantly reduced infections among children in pilot regions.
A major immunisation push is also underway, with plans to vaccinate 50 million children between 2026 and 2030—an effort projected to save more than 170,000 lives. Experts emphasised that reversing the current trend will require urgent and sustained action.
