Africa: Zero Malaria Still Starts with Us – Ten Years of Progress, One Final Push
On World Malaria Day 2014, in Dakar, Senegal, parents, health workers, students, government officials, athletes, teachers, and community and national leaders stood up and said, “Zero Malaria Starts with Me.” Today, that commitment is alive across the African continent.
They meant it. With every bed net hung, every child tested and treated, and every village meeting, they pushed back against a disease that has stolen too many lives. That spark didn’t stay in Senegal for long.
By 2018, African Union Heads of State and Government formally endorsed the campaign, turning a national movement into a continental force. From Dakar to Dar es Salaam, the message has echoed: Zero Malaria Starts with Me, and today, the movement has been officially launched in more than 30 African countries. Since the beginning of this year, we have seen significant leadership and engagement across the three campaign pillars.
Political engagement.
When leaders commit, change follows. That’s why the launch of the Coalition of Parliamentarians to End Malaria in Africa marked a turning point. At its founding, parliamentarians signed the Declaration on Malaria in Africa, pledging to raise domestic resources, ensure accountability, and integrate malaria into broader development plans. They are now anchoring malaria in national budgets and leading the call to fulfill the commitments of the Yaoundé Declaration.
Two weeks ago, Benin achieved a historic milestone in its fight against malaria with the launch of its parliamentary caucus. Members of parliament, health authorities, civil society, private sector leaders, and development partners were convened around a bold but achievable goal: that no child or pregnant woman in Benin should die from malaria by 2030. Speaking at the launch, Minister of Health Prof. Benjamin Hounkpatin emphasized the toll malaria continues to take — from school absenteeism and reduced productivity to an overburdened health system — and called the caucus a strategic platform to reverse these trends. With this launch, Benin is delivering on key commitments of both the Coalition of Parliamentarians to End Malaria in Africa (COPEMA) and the ECOWAS regional parliamentary network, REPEL Malaria.
At the ministerial level, Malaria Champions, an initiative led by African Leaders Malaria Alliance and the RBM Partnership to End Malaria, are driving visibility and high-level support for the fight against malaria. These champions are advocating for cross-border collaboration, integrating malaria into pandemic preparedness, and propelling forward the Big Push Against Malaria, an action plan to unlock innovation, strengthen partnerships, and end malaria for good.
Private sector engagement.
At the Africa CEO Forum in May 2025, Speak Up Africa, the African Leaders Malaria Alliance, Malaria No More Uk and the RBM Partnership launched the Francophone chapter of “Change the Story” campaign and unveiled the report Change the Story, Save Lives: The Private Sector’s Role in Ending Malaria. Business leaders across Africa are stepping up, investing in diagnostics, treatment, and supply chains, proving that the private sector can drive real change. Initiatives like the Voix EssentiELLEs Fund enables women-led, community-based solutions, linking gender equity with malaria elimination. As global funding declines, partnerships like this show how leadership and innovation can end malaria and unlock shared prosperity
Community power.
From youth groups in Zambia to religious leaders in Nigeria, communities are not just participating in the fight against malaria — they are leading it. Young people are proving to be a driving force behind the Zero Malaria Starts with Me movement, using their energy, creativity, and voices to push for change and protect their communities. In Senegal, to mark World Malaria Day and harness the unifying power of sports, Speak Up Africa partnered with the Basketball Africa League to host a School of Champions workshop for 50 young basketball players in Dakar. Through sport, these youth became ambassadors for change, learning how to lead, raise awareness, and help bring malaria to zero, one community at a time.
Yet none of this can happen without resources.
We are at a defining moment. The Global Fund replenishment and the Gavi 6.0 pledging round have underscored what’s possible when the world comes together. At the recent Gavi Summit, over US$ 9 billion was pledged to protect 500 million children through vaccines, including the malaria vaccine. African countries themselves pledged US$4 billion in co-financing, showing that domestic resource mobilization is no longer an option, it’s a priority.
These efforts are critical to delivering the tools we need faster, more equitably, and at scale. But we must go further.
The Big Push Against Malaria calls for the same urgency, solidarity, and leadership that brought us this far. It is an African-led agenda that aligns with the African Union’s goal to end malaria by 2030. It’s time to match ambition with action.
We know how to beat malaria. We have the tools. We have the partnerships. And more than ever, we have the will. As we mark the anniversary of Zero Malaria Starts with Me, we do more than reflect; we recommit.
Because zero malaria still starts with you. And with us. Let’s finish what we started.
By Joy Phumaphi and Yacine Djibo
