By Bill Gates

For much of the 21st century, it seemed like we were winning the fight against malaria—the deadliest mosquito-borne disease. Year over year, case numbers were steadily declining; at one point, malaria’s mortality rate had fallen by forty percent, too.

Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and a lot of hard-fought gains were lost. Countries on the verge of getting rid of malaria saw case numbers climb as prevention programs were disrupted, resources were diverted, and healthcare systems were overwhelmed. The trendline reversed and started heading in the wrong direction.

But progress is being made again, with deaths from the disease dropping from 2021 to 2022. It’s critical to continue bringing down these numbers—and save as many lives as possible—with the proven interventions we already have now. And I believe that in the next five to eight years, we’ll have the tools to not only eliminate malaria from certain countries but eradicate it everywhere.

For this year’s Mosquito Week, I’ve written a post about these innovative tools including next-generation vaccines, genetic modification, long-acting preventatives, single-dose treatments, and better ways to trap mosquitoes and kill their larvae—and what their successful development and widespread adoption would mean for the world.

I’ve also written about an exciting new innovation that’s been added to our fight against malaria: VectorCam, a phone app that uses computer vision to identify mosquito species in seconds. It’s still early days, but this groundbreaking technology is already revolutionizing how scientists track malaria-carrying mosquitoes—which could allow for faster, more targeted interventions.

The fight against malaria has been long and challenging. But with these new innovations, we’re getting
closer than ever to turning the tide, saving millions more lives, and ending the disease for good. Check out Mosquito Week on
Gates Notes for a deeper dive into how we’re outsmarting these tiny yet formidable foes. And be sure to follow along on my Instagram and YouTube channels throughout the week for even more.

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