Today, World Malaria Day (25 April) draws attention to a disease that still infects nearly 250 million people each year and kills close to one million of them, especially children. Currently, half the world’s population lives in areas where bites of infected mosquitoes could transmit the disease and many efforts are still needed to meet the 2010 target of delivering effective and affordable protection and treatment to at least 80% people at risk of malaria. Latest facts and figures are provided by the “World Malaria Report 2008” produced by the World Health Organization (WHO) addressing worldwide disease trends and actions taken.

Read the GreenFacts summary on Malaria: Status and challenges of the epidemic