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Europe is 100% malaria-free
Last reviewed: 02.07.2025
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April 25 was World Malaria Day and on the eve of the holiday, WHO announced that malaria had been completely eradicated in Europe. Cases of new diseases in Europe have significantly decreased over 20 years and today doctors have not registered a single new case of malaria in Europe.
According to the head of the WHO Regional Office for Europe, this achievement is an important stage in the history of health care, all European leaders have made a lot of efforts to achieve this, and today we can safely celebrate the complete victory over malaria in Europe. However, we cannot relax, since there are still countries on the planet where this disease is widespread, and tourists can bring malaria to Europe again, which will be the beginning of a new epidemic.
The Tashkent Declaration, adopted in 2005, played a significant role in the long journey to rid Europe of malaria. It was this declaration that became the basis for a new path to eradicating malaria in Europe (WHO set a goal to rid Europe of this disease by 2015). All countries affected by this problem used the declaration as a guideline and now, thanks to the coordinated work and clear actions of all European regions, cases of local infection have dropped to zero.
All countries demonstrated strong political commitment, made efforts to detect and monitor malaria cases, introduced new methods to combat the mosquitoes that transmit the disease, and informed citizens at risk, with local communities providing active support.
It is possible to obtain the official status of a region free of malaria if not a single new case of malaria has been detected in the country over the past 3 years.
Now, having analyzed the situation, the European Region is recognized as free of malaria, but the head of the WHO infectious diseases department emphasized that attention cannot be relaxed. As long as malaria remains in the world, the risk of a new wave of infection in Europe remains quite high and if European countries are not vigilant and do not react quickly, even one person sick with malaria can provoke a new wave of infection.
In Ashgabat this summer, WHO intends to hold a meeting to discuss issues related to a possible resurgence of malaria in Europe. Presumably, the meeting will include representatives of countries with a high risk of a return of the disease.
To prevent malaria from returning to Europe, WHO calls on all countries to maintain their commitment to the common cause, to continue testing and treating cases promptly. It is also important to understand the pathways through which the disease could return to Europe, and the risks associated with this. Each European region must be prepared for a resurgence and take immediate action.
It is worth noting that the results of the meeting will form the basis for a strategy to prevent the resurgence of malaria in Europe.