Celebrating 120 Years of Solidarity in Advancing Health and Well-Being, Leaving No One Behind
Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by parasites that are transmitted through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. Symptoms include fever, vomiting, and/or headache. Plasmodium vivax or P. falciparum are the most common malarial parasites. Of these, infection with P. falciparum is the most fatal.
© PAHO/WHO Paraguay | 2012. Malaria Champions of the Americas.
A child dies of malaria every 2 minutes. In 2020, there were an estimated 241 million cases of malaria worldwide and the estimated number of deaths stood at 627 000.
© PAHO/WHO Haiti, Hispaniola Island | 2017. Ouanaminthe-Dajabón Project. PHOTO: S Mey-Schmidt
Still, this disease is preventable and curable.
PAHO/WHO works with the governments, nonprofit organizations, initiatives and networks that support efforts in the Americas for the control and elimination of malaria: Amazon Network for the Surveillance of Antimalarial Drug Resistance and Malaria Champions of the Americas.
In 2016, PAHO/WHO Member States approved the resolution CD55.R7, Plan of Action for Malaria Elimination 2016-2020, seeking to prevent the reestablishment of the disease in 27 countries and territories of the Region that have been considered malaria-free since early 1970s.
© PAHO/WHO El Salvador | 2016. Malaria Champions of the Americas.
