Achievements in malaria prevention and control in Uganda: a scoping review

Background Uganda ranks among the top five countries with the highest global burden of malaria cases and deaths. Although Uganda has made progress in the scale up of key malaria control interventions, there remains a significant gap in achieving universal coverage for impact. By the end of 2025, the National Malaria Control Division (NMCD) aimed to reduce malaria morbidity by 50% and malaria related mortality by 75% of the 2019 levels. Aim The aim of this scoping review was to examine available literature on malaria prevention and control in Uganda to gain an insight on the progress, identify gaps and opportunities on the implementation of control strategies. This aimed to inform practice, policy and programs and provide direction for future research priorities to propel the country to malaria elimination. Methodology: The study involved reviewing published on malaria indicators from the year 2000 to 2024. Literature was obtained from PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Uganda Demographic Health Surveys, Uganda Malaria Indicator Surveys, Malaria Program Reviews and other sources. The search strategy included all study designs and was limited to those in English. Three independent reviewers performed the selection and characterization of articles, and the data was qualitatively synthesized. Results A total of 3,619 articles were identified and 38 were included in the analysis. The results were grouped into 3 major themes of: knowledge; practices; and policies for malaria prevention and control. The level of knowledge among adults on the different aspects of malaria was generally high and has increased over the past two and half decades. Coverage of interventions have remarkably improved over the years. Ownership of LLINs significantly increased from 13% in 2001 to 95% in 2021. The use of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) was at 69% in 2021. Intermittent preventive treatment for malaria during pregnancy (IPTp) have increased but still below the target, from 16% in 2006 to 72% in 2019. Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention has been piloted with promising results. Progress on environmental management and integrated community case management of childhood illnesses for malaria control has been slow. Various malaria policies have been adopted such as universal coverage for LLINs, and artemisinin combination therapies for uncomplicated malaria. Conclusion Uganda has made significant progress on different malaria prevention and control indicators. However, coverage of interventions is suboptimal to achieve malaria elimination. Innovations are needed in malaria control coupled with a multi-sectoral approach and political commitment to achieve malaria elimination.