Mali

Malaria in Mali

Malaria is the primary cause of morbidity and mortality in Mali, particularly among children under the age of five. The entire population of Mali is at risk from malaria, although transmission varies across the country’s geo-climatic zones. The disease is endemic in the central and southern regions where more than 90% of the population lives and epidemic in the north. Internally displaced persons migrating from the north are particularly at risk as they have low immunity to infection.

LINK activities

Making data available

In 2014, an Epidemiological Profile of Malaria and its Control in Mali was produced by the INFORM project, KEMRI Wellcome Trust in collaboration with the National Malaria Control Programme. During phase 1, LINK assembled a large amount of data including 649 estimates of malaria infection prevalence from 1980 to 2013 (covering the Anaemia and Parasiteamia survey of 2006 and the Demographic and Health Survey 2012-3).

During Phase 2, in 2018, LINK had a series a of meetings to reintroduce the project to the Programme National de Lutte contre le Paludisme (PNLP) and held a mid-term engagement meeting with the PNLP and partners in July 2018 where the updated maps and timeline were discussed. As part of this LINK has collated evidence from 138 published articles or MSc/PhD theses and 27 implementation reports/ policies. 

LINK produced a malaria indicator poster (in French and English) , a timeline (in French) and updated profile (French and English) with the PNLP in 2018.

Estimating malaria risk

By 2000 approximately 72.5% of the population of Mali lived in areas where PfPR_2-10 >50% and most of the rest (25.6%) were in areas where PfPR_2-10 >10% to 50%. By 2010, the percentage of the population at risk in the hyper-to holoendemic areas had reduced to about 52% with most transitioning to mesoendemic risk areas. By 2013, the trend appears to have been reversed with population in the two highest risk classes increasing to 65.6%. 

Between 2000-13, the general endemicity levels remained the same in most of the districts in north and north east regions with transmission largely hypoendemic in Kidal and mesoendemic in Tombouctou and Gau. Areas of hyperendemic and holoendemic transmission were found throughout the southern regions. By 2010, the number of districts under holoendemic risk (PfPR_2-10  ≥75%) reduced from 20 out of 60 to 10 but rose to back 18 in 2013 and were mainly in Segou and Sikasso regions. In the six communes of Bamako, transmission levels ranged from 35% to 45% PAPfPR_2-10 in 2000, reduced to between 18% to 35% in 2010 and returned to almost the 2000 transmission level in 2013 of 35% to 46%.