By Samira Larbie, GNA
Accra, April 25, GNA – Ghana has joined the global community to mark World Malaria Day 2026 with renewed optimism that the disease can be eliminated.
The Day, observed annually on April 25, highlights the need for sustained investment in malaria prevention, diagnosis and treatment, under the 2026 theme: “Driven to End Malaria: Now We Can. Now We Must.”
A statement issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) said advances in science and innovation had brought the goal of ending malaria within reach, citing significant progress made over the past two decades.
It noted that an estimated 2.3 billion malaria cases had been prevented, and 14 million lives saved since 2000, with 47 countries certified malaria-free within the same period.
The statement said new tools, including malaria vaccines, more effective insecticide-treated mosquito nets and improved treatments, were accelerating efforts to combat the disease.
WHO said about 10 million children are protected annually through vaccination programmes, while 84 per cent of newly distributed mosquito nets are more effective in preventing transmission.
Despite these gains, the statement cautioned that the fight against malaria was far from over, noting that about 282 million cases and 610,000 deaths were recorded globally in 2024, most occurring in sub-Saharan Africa.
It also highlighted challenges such as funding gaps and growing resistance to antimalarial drugs and insecticides, which threaten to reverse progress.
The WHO urged governments, partners and communities to intensify efforts to sustain gains and accelerate progress towards elimination, while encouraging individuals to adopt preventive measures, including sleeping under mosquito nets and seeking early treatment for fever.
“Now we can. Now we must,” the WHO emphasised, underscoring that a malaria-free future is achievable through collective action.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey