Nigeria: Nigeria Moves Closer to Protecting Millions of Children From Malaria With Perennial Malaria Chemoprevention

What the report says

Nigeria is moving closer to adopting perennial malaria chemoprevention (PMC) for young children after the first phase of the PMC Effect study produced local evidence to support national policy. According to the Malaria Consortium, government officials, researchers and development partners met in Abuja on 5 August 2026 to review the findings and discuss how the intervention could be incorporated into Nigeria’s malaria prevention strategy.

The study, carried out in Osun state between 2023 and 2025, found that children who received PMC had fewer confirmed malaria cases and fewer overall illness-related clinic visits. The report also says the medicine used in the programme, sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine, was safe for repeated monthly use in young children, and that combining PMC with insecticide-treated nets improved protection. The consortium added that delivery through routine primary healthcare and immunisation services appears feasible and affordable.

Officials said the results could help shape policy decisions as Nigeria looks for more effective tools to protect children in their most vulnerable years. The report also cited modelling that suggests wider rollout in eligible parts of southern Nigeria between 2026 and 2030 could reduce childhood malaria cases. The next phase, PMC-Effect Scale-up, is expected to begin in November and will focus on expanding the programme in Osun state while studying how it could be implemented more broadly.