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A feeding female Anopheles funestus mosquito siting on a human
Image: James Gathany/AP/picture alliance Image: James Gathany/AP/picture alliance

Malaria

Almost half the world's population is at risk of getting malaria, a life-threatening disease transmitted by the bite of female Anopheles mosquitoes. The World Health Organization marks World Malaria Day on April 25.

Skip next section All Content on this topic

All Content on this topic

A scientist with a pipette

Congo's Disease X: Could it be malaria?

An undiagnosed 'Disease X' is spreading in a remote region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Can it be treated?
HealthDecember 10, 2024
Asiatischer Tiger Moskito

The most dangerous mosquito-borne diseases

Mosquitoes can infect us with malaria and other illnesses. Here are some of the most dangerous ones.
ScienceAugust 21, 2024
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AfricaLink News: 16 July 2024

Paul Kagame looks set to secure a fourth term +++ Former US President Donald Trump makes his first public appearance
PoliticsJuly 16, 202402:22 min
Environmentalist Ginette Karirekinyana gives a training course to farmers about medicinal plants.

Burundi tackling malaria by reviving endangered plants

Ginette Karirekinyana is an expert on the medicinal properties of wild plant species, some threatened with extinction.
HealthJuly 4, 202402:32 min
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In Good Shape - DW Health Show

Tropical diseases, motion sickness, sun burn. How can we navigate these vacation dangers?
HealthJune 21, 202426:04 min
An Aedes albopictus mosquito sitting on a person's skin

Dengue is coming to Europe

Warmer conditions in Europe are helping invasive mosquitos that transmit dengue, chikungunya and Zika viruses thrive.
ScienceJune 13, 2024
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Mumbai battles mosquitoes with sustainable traps

Rather than repelling mosquitoes, Eco BioTraps attract females and breaks their chain of breeding.
Nature and EnvironmentJune 10, 202405:57 min
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Invasive species: A problem that's hard to fix

Invasive species have a huge financial and ecological impact. What can be done to combat uninvited guests?
Nature and EnvironmentJune 7, 202426:04 min
A syringe is stuck into a malaria vaccine at a health center in Cameroon

Why we are losing the fight to control global malaria cases

After two decades of decline, malaria cases worldwide have remained steady since 2015. Why have control efforts stalled?
ScienceApril 23, 2024
Men stand around canoes during Robert Koch's Africa expedition in in 1906

How distrust in Western vaccines was born during colonialism

Many unsafe vaccinations were tested on African subjects without their knowledge or consent during the colonial era.
HistoryMarch 18, 2024
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In Good Shape - Parasites & Bedbugs & Mites

Bedbugs, tapeworms, mosquitoes with a fatal bite. How can you avoid falling victim to them?
HealthMarch 1, 202426:06 min
A nurse prepares to administer a malaria vaccine to infant

Cameroon rolls out vaccine against malaria

It will be offered free of charge to all children under 6 months old, but persuading some parents will be a challenge.
HealthJanuary 25, 202402:19 min
A mother holds her crying baby while it gets a shot in the leg from a nurse

Malaria child vaccination campaign kicks off in Cameroon

Cameroon has begun a large-scale malaria vaccination campaign that's supposed to see 250,000 children immunized.
HealthJanuary 22, 2024
2 men smile holding a certificate in a golden frame with the words Cape Verde visible

WHO declares Cape Verde malaria-free

Cape Verde has become the third African nation to be declared malaria-free.
SocietyJanuary 15, 202400:59 min
AFCON Africa Cup Kamerun 2022 | Senegal vs. Ägypten | Mohamed Salah

AfricaLink on Air - 15 January 2024

Reactions as Cape Verde is declared malaria-free +++ AFCON games: What is the latest from Ivory Coast?
PoliticsJanuary 15, 202429:56 min
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (right) and Ulisses Correia e Silva holding up a framed certificate

Malaria-free Cape Verde a 'beacon of hope' for Africa

The WHO has certified Cape Verde as malaria-free. But much remains to be done in the fight against the disease.
HealthJanuary 15, 2024
A mosquito is sitting on a mosquito net while lower-income individuals are sleeping inside the net on a van in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on December 4, 2023.

Africa: WHO declares Cape Verde free of malaria

It's only the third African country to eliminate the disease in a win for public health planning.
HealthJanuary 12, 2024
An illustration shows a group of bacteria colored pinkish purple

The global threat of antimicrobial resistance

Many pathogens have grown resistant to the most effective medicines, and developing alternatives is growing critical.
HealthDecember 21, 202302:39 min
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Tomorrow Today – The Science Magazine

What can be done about invasive insects that can transmit dangerous diseases or damage ecosystems?
ScienceNovember 11, 202326:06 min
A young child in a Malawian village of Tomali gets vaccinated against malaria.

WHO endorses new malaria vaccine for Africa rollout

In Africa, malaria still causes hundreds of thousands of deaths every year. Hopes for a new vaccine are high.
HealthOctober 14, 202302:36 min
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Why many people around the world can't afford good health

Millions of low income people around the world struggle to be healthy.
HealthJuly 28, 202326:06 min

New rapid malaria test: A breakthrough by Angolan twins

The innovative system delivers a result just two minutes after a patient places their index finger in the device.
InnovationJuly 13, 202301:40 min
DW Podcast | Science Unscripted

Stop mosquitoes — with an 'armor' made of cream

Researchers in Israel have created a new insect repellant that could save lives and make summer nights more enjoyable.
ScienceJuly 1, 202309:31 min
Chikungunyu virus is transmitted by mosquitoes. Nets are your best defence until the vaccine becomes available

New chikungunya vaccine: Climate change may spread demand

A Phase III human trial found the live chikungunya vaccine highly protective.
ScienceJune 14, 2023
Kenia | Impfung gegen Malaria

AfricaLink on Air — 25 April 2023

Ghana rolls out new malaria vaccine despite WHO's approval+++ Sudanese fear worse to come as foreigners head out
PoliticsApril 25, 202329:58 min
Symbolbild Malaria | Spritze

New mRNA vaccine hub officially launched in Cape Town

A new mRNA vaccine technology facility hopes to give equitable access to vaccines in low- and middle-income countries.
HealthApril 21, 2023
Mosquirix malaria vaccine

Ghana first to approve Oxford malaria vaccine

An Oxford University malaria vaccine has received its first approval, in Ghana.
HealthApril 13, 2023
Health workers in protective gear prepare paperwork for Ebola vaccines in a hospital in Guinea

75 years of the WHO: Not a 'global health police'

The World Health Organization was established on April 7, 1948. It's had major successes ― and failures.
HealthApril 6, 2023
Symbolbild Malaria | Spritze

Ghana expands malaria vaccination rollout

Ghana is expanding its malaria vaccine immunization program to ensure the shots reach thousands of high-risk children.
HealthMarch 11, 202302:29 min
An anopheles mosquito

Antimalarial drug resistance on the rise in Africa

Artemisinin is the most important component in antimalarial drugs, but some parasites in Africa are becoming resistant.
HealthJanuary 6, 2023
Mosquitos in a lab

Invasive mosquito linked to new malaria outbreaks in Africa

The species thrives in urban areas and threatens to undo progress in eradicating the disease
HealthNovember 2, 2022
Women and children being treated in hospital for waterborne diseases that broke out after floods in Pakistan

Pakistan floods: UN urges help as disease spreads

The UN children's agency renewed its appeal for $39 million to help the most vulnerable flood victims.
CatastropheSeptember 21, 2022
Child sleeping under a colorful quilt.

A new malaria vaccine shows promise in trials

Scientists, testing a new malaria vaccine, say it could have a "major impact" and hope to start producing doses by 2023.
ScienceSeptember 9, 2022
Men carry large bags on the migration route from Venezuela

How stigmas impact refugee, migrant health

People who migrate or flee their home countries experience major health barriers, a new WHO report shows.
HealthJuly 22, 2022
Cape Verde coats houses with anti-mosquito paint

Cape Verde coats houses with anti-mosquito paint

Houses in Cape Verde are being coated with an anti-insecticide paint to help stop the spread of mosquito-borne diseases.
HealthJune 17, 202201:45 min
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Are mosquitoes becoming more dangerous?

Global heating will expose half the world’s population to dangerous mosquitoes by 2050. Time for drastic measures?
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 4, 202229:04 min
Drug-resistant tuberculosis survivor Lizahn Kemp holds the pills she has to take in her hands

Antibiotic-resistant microbes deadlier than malaria

More than a million people worldwide die each year from infections linked to microbes resistant to antibiotics.
HealthJanuary 20, 2022
An illustration shows coronaviruses in three different colors

Endemic, epidemic, pandemic: What's the difference?

COVID is currently a pandemic. But many assume the virus will become endemic, meaning we'll have to live with it.
ScienceDecember 30, 2021
Sudan I Protest in Khartoum

AfricaLink on Air - 18 October 2021

Sudanese demand return of military+Cameroon separatists in mourning+Nigieria's palm oil industry+Malaria vaccine
PoliticsOctober 18, 202130:01 min
A mother holds her baby as she receives a new malaria vaccine as part of a trial at the Walter Reed Project Research Center in Kombewa in Western Kenya

WHO approves first malaria vaccine

The vaccine is only 30% effective and requires four shots but it is expected to save the lives of thousands of children.
HealthOctober 7, 2021
A female Anopheles mosquito sits on human skin

Is Africa ready to produce a malaria vaccine?

Biontech wants to use mRNA technology to develop shots against malaria.
HealthSeptember 10, 2021
A health professional prepares the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine solution for injection

BioNTech looks into making jabs in Rwanda, Senegal

The German company wants to boost vaccine production facilities in Africa, where 99% of the jabs are imported.
HealthAugust 27, 2021
An anopheles mosquito on a human body

Mosquito myths busted

This World Mosquito Day, learn what will protect you against mosquitos, why they're good and the sweet blood theory.
ScienceAugust 20, 2021
Anopheles mosquito

How mosquitos also do good

Mosquitos are deadly pests. But they also pollinate plants, clean water and may even help us treat human conditions.
ScienceAugust 20, 20215 images
Illustration of white blood cells and cancer cells

From COVID to malaria: mRNA vaccines

Scientists see potential for messenger RNA in medicine beyond COVID-19 vaccines. Could mRNA malaria vaccines be next?
ScienceJuly 29, 2021
Image taken January 20, 2021 shows the manufacturing process of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

BioNTech sets sights on malaria vaccine

After developing a COVID vaccine in record time, the pharmaceutical firm aims to start trialing a malaria shot in 2022.
HealthJuly 26, 2021
A woman and her child in a medical consultation in Africa, using the ePOCT+ machine learning tool

Machine learning vs. magic medicine

Swiss researchers and doctors in Africa have developed a digital tool to help clinicians prescribe fewer antibiotics.
ScienceJune 30, 2021
Mosquito feeding on a human arm

WHO declares China malaria-free after 70 years of efforts

China has become the 40th country to be declared malaria-free in the world.
HealthJune 30, 2021
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Weekly COVID-19 roundup — Inhalers & underwear

Think twice before you go looking for an asthma inhaler, and has your personal hygiene changed for the worse?
ScienceApril 27, 202130:00 min
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AfricaLink on Air - 26 April 2021

Chad's military names a civilian prime minister+++Two cross dressers in Cameroon face trial for attempted homosexuality.
PoliticsApril 26, 202130:00 min