Nigeria Scales Up Malaria Vaccination as MSF Warns of Deadly Link with Child Malnutrition

As Nigeria intensifies efforts to curb its malaria crisis, the Federal Government has expanded the rollout of malaria vaccines to more states, even as humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) raises concern over the growing toll of the disease among malnourished children.

The Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Muyi Aina, announced in Abuja that the malaria vaccination programme has been extended beyond its initial pilot phase in Bayelsa State and Kebbi State to include Bauchi State and Ondo State.

The expansion is part of a broader strategy to reduce infections and deaths in a country that continues to bear the heaviest global malaria burden. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) World Malaria Report 2025, Nigeria accounts for 24.3 per cent of malaria cases worldwide, 30.3 per cent of deaths, and more than half of all cases in West Africa.

While the government scales up preventive measures, MSF has said the reality on the ground remains dire—particularly for children battling both malaria and malnutrition.

Speaking in Katsina at the weekend to mark World Malaria Day 2026, MSF’s Acting Medical Team Leader, Dr. Alibaba Nuraddeen, revealed that malaria ranked among the top three diseases treated in the organisation’s Inpatient Therapeutic Feeding Centres (ITFCs) in 2025.

He disclosed that MSF managed about 26,000 children in its inpatient facilities in Katsina alone, with malaria featuring prominently alongside acute watery diarrhoea and sepsis as leading causes of illness.

Nuraddeen described malaria and malnutrition as a “dangerous cycle” that continues to endanger child health. According to him, malnutrition weakens the immune system, leaving children more susceptible to infection, while malaria further compounds the problem by reducing appetite and limiting food intake.

“Treating malnutrition without malaria testing risks delayed recovery,” he warned, stressing that undiagnosed or poorly treated malaria can persist for weeks or months, ultimately pushing affected children into severe malnutrition.

MSF said it has adopted a routine approach of screening every malnourished child for malaria in its facilities and providing immediate treatment for those who test positive.

Public health experts note that Nigeria’s fight against malaria will require a coordinated approach that combines vaccination, early diagnosis, effective treatment, and improved nutrition—especially for children who remain the most vulnerable.

With the vaccine rollout gaining momentum and frontline responders highlighting critical gaps, the country faces a pivotal moment in its battle against one of its deadliest and most persistent diseases.

By Michael Olugbode