Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) were responsible for the majority of malaria-related deaths worldwide, according to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) report on the disease for 2021.
Nigeria accounted for 31% of fatalities, the Democratic Republic of the Congo recorded 13%, and the two nations that lagged behind were the Niger Republic (4% fatalities) and the United Republic of Tanzania (4% fatalities).
The research, which was accessed on Friday, states that in 2021, slightly over half of all malaria deaths worldwide occurred in the four countries.
The organization said that last year’s malaria cases and mortality were steady despite the ongoing effects of COVID-19.
According to the statistics, there were 247 million cases of malaria and 619,000 fatalities worldwide in 2021, up two million instances and down six million deaths from the pandemic’s beginning in 2019.
“Twenty-nine countries accounted for 96% of malaria cases globally, and four countries – Nigeria (27%), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (12%), Uganda (5%) and Mozambique (4%) – accounted for almost half of all cases globally,” the report read in part.
“About 96% of malaria deaths globally were in 29 countries. Four countries accounted for just over half of all malaria deaths globally in 2021: Nigeria (31%), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (13%), the Niger (4%), and the United Republic of Tanzania (4%).”
The health organization also disclosed that, in contrast to 2020, when the COVID pandemic disrupted malaria services, leading to a noticeable increase in cases and deaths, countries around the world largely held the line against further setbacks to malaria prevention, testing, and treatment services.
“In 2021, countries distributed 223 million rapid diagnostic tests (RDT), a similar level reported before the pandemic.
“In 2021, insecticide-treated nets (ITN) distributions were strong overall and at similar levels to pre-pandemic years: 171 million ITNs planned for distribution, 128 million (75%) were distributed,” the agency added.