Malaria is the tropics' most serious infectious disease, with its heaviest burden is felt in sub Saharan Africa (SSA). About 90% of all malaria deaths in the world today occur in the region, with an estimated one million people dying from the disease each year, most of them being children under five years old.
For effective and sustainable control of malaria to be achieved, new tools and approaches for fighting the disease’s parasites and mosquito vectors are urgently needed. This is because vector control and treatment methods previously effective in controlling malaria are now largely ineffective due to the growing prevalence of insecticide-resistant mosquitoes and drug-resistant parasites.
The icipe malaria research programme focusses on mosquito ecology, mosquito behaviour and malaria transmission, with the aim of developing integrated vector management (IVM) tools that go beyond bednets and traditional insecticide-based approaches.