Mosquito-borne diseases killed more than one million people and infected up to 700 million each year, representing almost one in 10 people, according to the World Mosquito Programme (WMP).

It disclosed that 2024 was the worst year on record as more than 14 million cases were reported worldwide, with close to 12,000 dengue-related deaths.

In Nigeria, an estimated 55 million malaria cases and nearly 90,000 malaria deaths occur each year.

According to the 2024 World Malaria Report (WMR), Nigeria has 31 per cent of malaria-related deaths worldwide, and the disease remains one of the most significant public health challenges in the country, with an estimated 97 per cent of the population at risk.

WMP revealed that about 3.6 million dengue fever cases and over 1,900 deaths have been reported from 94 countries and territories in 2025.

In a message to mark the 2025 World Mosquito Day, Senior Director of Field Entomology at WMP, Dr Greg Devine, said that the general trend in dengue cases globally is relentlessly upwards, while sustainable ways to combat dengue, such as the Wolbachia method, are desperately needed.

Devine, who noted that dengue fever is the world’s most prevalent disease spread by mosquitoes, pointed out that cases are increasing across the Western Pacific and South East Asia.

Meanwhile, earlier this year, Colombia witnessed a yellow fever outbreak, and in late March, the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) issued an epidemiological alert in response to increased cases across the Americas.

WMP noted that in recent weeks, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has raised an urgent call to prevent a repeat of an epidemic of chikungunya that swept the globe two decades ago, as new outbreaks linked to the Indian Ocean region spread to Europe and other continents, adding that an estimated 5.6 billion people live in areas across 119 countries at risk from the virus.

It disclosed that more than 8,000 cases had now been reported in Foshan, China, prompting the United States (U.S.) Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue a travel warning to caution visitors. Hong Kong has also recently reported its first imported cases.