From 42 in every 100 to 7: Bioko's 22-year fight brings malaria to its lowest level ever

When the work began in 2004, about 42 in every 100 people on Bioko Island carried malaria. The island's 2025 survey — the most careful count yet — puts that figure at 7.2%, the lowest ever recorded there. This month the partnership behind that long, patient work signed on for five more years: MCD Global Health, the Government of Equatorial Guinea and energy partners ConocoPhillips, Chevron, SONAGAS and GEPetrol agreed a $74.4 million renewal of the Bioko Island Malaria Elimination Project. The money keeps the unglamorous tools that worked — indoor spraying, bed nets, surveillance, diagnostics and local training — and, for the first time, extends the project beyond Bioko to mainland Equatorial Guinea and Annobón Island, with new research partnerships at UC Davis, Oxford and Tsinghua. 'This investment allows us to protect lives nationwide,' said Guillermo García, who directs MCD's international programmes.

SDG 3 · Good health and well-being — Mechanism: institutional program