Malaria’s Unrelenting Threat, RIGHT Foundation’s Unrelenting Response

Despite this progress, the fight against malaria is far from over. In 2024, approximately 282 million people were infected with malaria, and 610,000 died—an increase of roughly 9 million infections compared to 2023. The burden remains especially high among low- and middle-income countries and vulnerable populations, with approximately 95% of malaria deaths occurring in Africa and the majority among children under the age of five. In this context, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed concern, stating, “New tools for malaria prevention are giving us new hope, but we still face significant challenges.”

The problem of drug resistance is also intensifying. Partial resistance to artemisinin, the key drug in artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT)—the standard treatment for malaria—has been confirmed or suspected in several African countries, and there are signs that the efficacy of partner drugs used alongside it is also declining. This underscores the urgent need for the development of new treatments.