Equatorial Guinea has announced plans to achieve zero indigenous malaria transmission in targeted districts by 2028, as part of its ambitious Vision 2030 malaria elimination strategy.
Hon. Mitoha Ondo’o Ayekaba, Minister of Health, Social Welfare and Health Infrastructure, disclosed this on Thursday during a high-level engagement briefing with the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).
The minister outlined the country’s transition from long-standing malaria control to full national elimination.
He explained that the strategy builds on more than two decades of sustained interventions, particularly on Bioko Island, where malaria control efforts began over 20 years ago.
The initial phase focused on reducing transmission rather than elimination and achieved significant results, including a 75 per cent reduction in malaria prevalence among children aged 2–14 years and a 78 per cent decline in under-five mortality.
“Overall malaria prevalence across all age groups dropped to 7.2 per cent in 2025, while transmission intensity declined by 78 per cent,” Ayekaba said. “The programme also recorded a 77 per cent reduction in anaemia among pregnant women and eliminated two major mosquito vector species on the island.”
He noted that the government and its partners invested approximately $130 million over two decades to establish a strong malaria control foundation.
“Control is not elimination. While the first phase dramatically reduced malaria, the second phase aims to interrupt transmission nationwide, including on Bioko Island, Annobón, and the continental region,” he added.
For the 2026–2030 period, a total of $116 million has been secured to fund the elimination phase. The Government of Equatorial Guinea will contribute $52 million, while development partners will provide $64 million.
The minister described this financing structure as a reflection of national ownership and sustained international confidence.
“Vision 2030 is anchored on four strategic pillars: deployment of the next-generation R21 malaria vaccine; innovation in vector control, such as drone-based larval source management; strengthened indoor residual spraying and entomological surveillance; and responsible development of genetically modified mosquitoes in collaboration with international scientific institutions,” he said.
The strategy also includes high-precision epidemiological surveillance to detect residual transmission pockets and imported cases, as well as the establishment of a technical advisory group to ensure scientific governance.
A key component is the construction of a regional public health laboratory to strengthen molecular diagnostics, genomic surveillance, and operational research capacity. The laboratory will be developed under the guidance of Africa CDC to meet continental standards and integrate into regional surveillance networks.
Under the elimination scorecard, Equatorial Guinea aims to sustain national malaria prevalence below 5 per cent before 2028, maintain effective treatment coverage above 90 per cent, and achieve zero indigenous transmission in targeted districts by 2028.
The minister acknowledged that national-scale malaria elimination in Central Africa has no close precedent but expressed confidence that combining proven control strategies with frontier technologies, vaccines, and strong political leadership would deliver results.
Vision 2030, he added, represents not a continuation of control efforts but a transformation toward complete malaria elimination.
It was reported that malaria remains endemic in Equatorial Guinea and is a leading cause of illness and death, with approximately 348,428 reported cases and 785 deaths in 2021.
Transmission occurs year-round and is particularly intense in rural areas, where prevalence can reach as high as 89.7 per cent. Children under five are the most affected, and Plasmodium falciparum accounts for more than 96 per cent of infections.
The Bioko Island Malaria Elimination Project (BIMEP), launched in 2004, significantly reduced malaria prevalence on the island from 43.3 per cent in the early 2000s to 10.5 per cent by 2016 through sustained indoor residual spraying, insecticide-treated nets, and larval source management.
However, progress has plateaued in recent years, with prevalence fluctuating between 10 and 12 per cent since 2016, partly due to imported cases from the mainland.
Despite these challenges, the government is advancing its national elimination agenda under Vision 2030, aiming to transition fully from malaria control to elimination.
