Want to end the malaria crisis? Start with women and girls

What you probably already know: Malaria is a preventable, treatable disease, but it claims hundreds of thousands of lives every year. An estimated 597,000 people died of malaria in 2023, according to the World Health Organization’s latest World Malaria Report. The disease is most prevalent in Africa, where 11 countries bear about two-thirds of the world’s malaria burden. But that burden disproportionately impacts certain groups within malaria-affected communities, particularly women and adolescent girls.

Why? Traditional gender norms in Africa prevent women from accessing the same economic and educational opportunities as men. They also lack decision-making power within families, despite being the primary caregivers within their households and communities. These factors prevent women and girls from having equal access to malaria prevention and treatment. Malaria also poses major challenges during pregnancy, increasing the risk of anemia, serious illness, maternal death, and stillbirth. Of the estimated 36 million people who were pregnant in the WHO Africa Region in 2023, 12.4 million (34%) were infected with malaria. On top of the reasons listed above, treatment is hard for pregnant women to access because of long travel distances to clinics and shortages of medication.

What it means: The eradication of malaria would remove the constant threat of illness, long-term complications, and death for pregnant women and children, said Lizz Ntonjira, co-chair of the Zero Malaria Campaign Coalition and author #YouthCan. A malaria-free world would also unlock doors that have stood in the way of women’s empowerment and equality. “With fewer days lost to illness or caregiving, women could participate more fully in education, work, and community life, improving their economic prospects and independence. Girls would also miss fewer days of school due to illness, supporting higher educational attainment and future opportunities,” Ntonjira said. “The removal of this major health barrier would help level the playing field, accelerating progress toward gender equality and enabling women and girls to reach their full potential.”

What happens now? Climate change and cuts to foreign aid are complicating efforts to control and eradicate malaria, but progress is also a matter of closing gender gaps. For example, an article co-authored by Ntonjira explains that households with women who have better bargaining power are 16 times more likely to use mosquito nets effectively, reducing malaria cases. Changing harmful gender norms starts with community engagement: challenging stereotypes, raising awareness, and promoting equitable access to prevention and care, Ntonjira said. She believes malaria interventions should be integrated with broader initiatives (such as reproductive programs) that seek gender and health equity. Gender-disaggregated data is key to holding programs accountable. “The single most important change needed is to place women and girls at the center of malaria programs — ensuring their leadership, voices, and specific needs are prioritized in the design and delivery of interventions,” Ntonjira said. “Empowering women and adolescent girls as community health champions and leaders not only improves access to services but also accelerates progress toward both malaria elimination and gender equality.”