Malaria is a parasitic disease transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes. According to WHO, malaria infected 247 million people in 2021, leading to 619 000 deaths, making it the deadliest parasitic disease in the world. According to the World Malaria Report 2020, 29 countries alone recorded 95% of cases and deaths, including ten West African countries (including Niger, accounting for 3%) and India (which recorded 70% of cases).154 As a vector-borne disease, malaria is sensitive to variations in temperature, humidity and rainfall, which influence the vector habitat and parasite development. It is therefore important to deepen our knowledge of the local climate and how it is changing in order to better control the incidence and spread of malaria. Few studies have considered the effect of climate on malaria in Niger to describe the relationships between the variation of key climatic parameters and malaria to inform the malaria control strategies and policies in Niger.

Niger’s Climate and Health Bulletin is produced by the multidisciplinary Climate-Health Group, using a consensusbased approach for development through co-development with the health sector. Since its launch in 2017, it has provided an analysis of the climactic conditions as well as an epidemiological overview of areas with potentially high malaria transmission in Niger. Other diseases could also be assessed, according to the needs identified in annual planning meetings.

Thanks to the Climate and Health Bulletins, recommendations and advice were sent to the various users, including health organizations, humanitarian partners, decision makers and the general public.

The various working groups have functioned with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the World Food Programme (WFP). A funding gap in 2019 prevented the development of the bulletin, and insufficient funding has limited the implementation of the National Framework for Climate Services in Niger. Limited training of the technicians who produce the analyses in epidemiological techniques and statistics means there have been limited methodological improvements in the sensitivity analyses. Limited participation of group members in the various validation meetings is a significant constraint, and therefore certain points of expertise are missing in the production of the bulletin. The lack of reliable data, such as those on vector breeding sites, also limits the analyses.

The skills developed by the experts enabled them to understand that there is indeed an association between the variability of key climatic parameters and the proliferation of mosquitoes.