Nepal Misses Malaria Elimination Target Again, New Deadline Set for 2030
Nepal has once again failed to meet its malaria elimination goal and has now extended the deadline to 2030. However, as the number of both local (indigenous) and imported malaria cases continues to rise, public health experts are not very hopeful that the target will be achieved even in the next five years.
Dr. Gokarna Dahal, head of the Vector Control Section at the Epidemiology and Disease Control Division, said, “We couldn’t achieve the goal due to several challenges.”
Malaria is caused by Plasmodium parasites, which are spread by the bite of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. Indigenous malaria means the infection is spread within Nepal, while imported cases refer to infections brought in by people who have traveled to malaria-affected areas, mostly in India and Africa.
Nepal had previously aimed to become malaria-free by 2026. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), to achieve that, the country needed to reduce local transmission to zero and report no deaths from malaria from 2023 onwards. But instead, the number of cases has gone up.
In 2024, Nepal reported 1,043 malaria cases — 1,006 of them were imported, and 37 were indigenous. In 2023, there were 528 cases in total, including 23 indigenous ones.
Experts blame open borders with India, global travel, climate change (which is allowing mosquitoes to reach higher altitudes), lack of entomologists (insect experts), and budget cuts for the failure. Over 80% of imported cases are from India, and others are from African countries, especially among Nepali soldiers returning from UN peacekeeping missions.
Another concern is the increase in Plasmodium falciparum, a more dangerous type of malaria parasite, which is commonly found in Africa and can cause severe illness and even death.
In the past, malaria was mostly found in the Tarai region, but now cases are being reported from hill and mountain districts like Mugu, Bajura, and Humla, which were once considered malaria-free. This shift is linked to climate change and the spread of mosquitoes to new areas.
Single indigenous cases found in random places have made tracking and eliminating the disease even more difficult.
Despite these challenges, health officials say they are still committed to achieving the 2030 goal. A new national strategy for malaria elimination has been approved, and efforts are being made to strengthen disease surveillance and learn from past mistakes.
