By Chidinma Ewunonu-Aluko, Ibadan
A Public Health Physician, Dr Ifeoluwa Odedina, says Nigeria’s 2030 malaria elimination target may be unrealistic as cases and deaths have slightly increased.
Odedina, Senior Registrar, Department of Community Medicine, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, made the remark on Friday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Ibadan.
He spoke ahead of the 2026 World Malaria Day, themed “Driven to End Malaria: Now We Can, Now We Must”.
Odedina said according to WHO’s World Malaria Report, Nigeria recorded about 68,136,000 cases and 184,600 deaths in 2023.
He added that in 2024, the country had an estimated 68,466,000 cases and about 184,800 deaths.
“Figures for 2025 are not yet available,” he said.
Odedina, also an Epidemiologist, noted that the data showed a slight increase in both cases and deaths.
“The 2030 elimination target seeks to reduce malaria incidence by at least 90 per cent from the levels in 2015 by the year 2030.
“With four years left and high transmission ongoing, the goal is in jeopardy but there is still hope of making significant progress with concerted efforts,” he said.
According to him, Nigeria accounts for about 27 per cent of global malaria cases, listing two top drivers behind the burden.
“Favourable climate- which drives intense transmission, warm temperatures, high rainfall, and humidity allow year-round breeding of Anopheles gambiae.
“The second driver is gaps in effective prevention and treatment coverage; net use is inconsistent, window screening and indoor spraying are uneven.
“Delayed diagnosis and treatment persist due to poor access to primary health care; this keeps sources for continued transmission; interventions like insecticide-treated nets have high potential efficacy.
“Net usage can prevent about 50 per cent of cases and reduce child deaths by up to 17 per cent but some people have the nets but don’t use them due to constant heat, discomfort and cultural barriers,” he said.
On resistance, the physician confirmed that both drug and insecticide resistance are threats.
Odedina remarked that Nigeria already has significant resistance to older drugs like chloroquine and Sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine.
He notes that current drugs, Artemisinin Combination Therapies, still have high cure rates, yet low levels of key resistance markers have appeared in genomic studies.
He said that UCH partners with the Malaria Research Laboratory at IAMRAT, University of Ibadan, adding that the work covers parasite genomic studies, drug resistance, and clinical trials.
He explained that the studies would increase understanding of the parasite and help develop new diagnostics, treatment strategies, and preventive measures.
He dismissed the myth that malaria is harmless, stressing that majority of people in Nigeria do not realise how deadly Malaria is.
“It is a disease that is responsible for a lot of deaths every year and we should take prevention more seriously,” he said.
He, however emphasised urgency and decisive action on the theme for the year.
“We are in a new season where we have new effective tools and strategies like vaccines.
“People should realise that malaria is conquerable and several countries have eradicated it already.
“Algeria, Cape Verde, and China eradicated malaria within the last 10 years; if they can do it, Nigeria can do it too.
“Everyone should sleep under an insecticide treated mosquito net and make sure other people in their family do too.
“It is the most effective, cheap protection,” he said.
The public health physician further urged the government to ensure Rapid Diagnostic Test kits, knowledgeable staff, and medicines are available at every health centre.
This he said, would enable proper checking and treatment as well as lower the level of transmission
“Governments, other organisations and everyone must come together to make the most of the opportunity,” Odedina said. (NAN)
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