Increase in the number of cases
The number of malaria cases rose from 227 million in 2019 to 241 million in 2020, an increase of 14 million (with most of the increase occurring in countries in the WHO African Region).
Increased number of deaths
An estimated 69,000 more people died from malaria in 2020 compared to 2019 (627,000 vs. 558,000)..
Nearly two-thirds (47,000) of the additional malaria deaths resulted from disruptions in malaria prevention, diagnosis, and treatment services during the pandemic. National malaria control programs distributed́ nearly 48 million fewer artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) treatments in 2020 than in 2019.
In addition, as of this year, a new WHO statistical methodology is being applied to calculate the number of malaria deaths in children under 5 years of age since 2000. This new methodology accounts for 1/3 of the additional deaths (22,000) and shows that malaria accounts for a larger share (7.8%) of deaths in children under 5 than previously thought (4.8%)