The campaign, coordinated by the government with partners including Malaria Consortium, will distribute over 5.5 million nets to close to nine million people.
Togo has launched a new national campaign to distribute free insecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs) as part of ongoing efforts to reduce the burden of malaria across the country.
This new campaign reflects a wider trend across the continent, of countries deploying widespread distribution of ITNs, one of the most effective forms of vector control in the fight against malaria.
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Following the census phase conducted in June 2026, the first rollout of nets ran from 14 to 18 July 2026, covering the Maritime, Plateaux, Central and Savannah regions. The second and final phase, covering Kara and Greater Lomé, concluded on 30 July 2026.
The campaign distributed 5,658,350 nets to 8,866,375 people, with one net for every two people per household. Nets were distributed at fixed sites, where individuals who have already registered could collect their net free of charge by presenting their distribution coupon. This campaign was fully digitalised, which allows for better, real-time monitoring of mosquito net distribution.
Alongside distribution, the Ministry and its partners provided education on correct and consistent net use, to ensure they deliver their full protective benefit.
A coordinated effort
The campaign has been implemented by the Togolese government with support from partners, including Malaria Consortium, the Global Fund, the US Government, REACH Malaria, Integrate Health, Plan International, GIZ, WHO and UNICEF. Malaria Consortium provided technical assistance to strengthen the campaign's digital systems and support the planning and coordination of logistics for the rollout.
"Malaria Consortium is proud to support Togo's Ministry of Health in implementing this nationwide ITN campaign. By providing technical assistance for the rollout of the campaign's digital system and supporting logistics coordination, we are helping strengthen real-time monitoring and improve the efficiency and quality of ITN distribution, ensuring health authorities have the information they need to make timely decisions," says Komivi Tongon, Country Director, Malaria Consortium Togo.
The partnership is part of Malaria Consortium's broader strategy of strengthening the systems that make malaria prevention sustainable at scale.
In similar efforts, Borno state in Nigeria has launched its 2026 ITN Campaign Coordination Committee, paving the way for the distribution of more than five million free ITNs across all 27 local government areas (LGAs) -- the largest ITN distribution the state has seen in over a decade. The Borno campaign forms part of a wider ITN distribution programme that will also be implemented in Abia, Kogi and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The work in Togo and Nigeria are the latest in a series of large-scale ITN rollouts that Malaria Consortium is supporting across the African continent this year. They are but two examples of a broader pattern: as ITN campaigns grow in scale across the region, Malaria Consortium is supporting the systems behind them, providing not only technical assistance on digitalisation and logistics, but also in social and behaviour change implementation, to ensure ITNs both reach the households that need them most and are used correctly and effectively.
Challenges ahead
Speaking on behalf of the WHO Resident Representative in Togo, Dr Hilaire Ouédraogo stressed that the campaign's success will depend on how consistently nets are used once distributed.
"A mosquito net only protects when used correctly. We invite families to sleep every night under an impregnated mosquito net, community leaders to continue raising awareness and the media to widely relay prevention messages," he said. It's a challenge Malaria Consortium understands well and is directly addressing through projects such as Be in a Net, which applied behavioural science to increase net use in households that already own one.
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The road ahead
This wide-scale intervention comes at a prescient time. In Togo, malaria continues to tax the country's health system heavily; according to the 2025 World Malaria Report, the country reported over 2.37 million cases. Nigeria carries one of the largest malaria burdens of any country in the world, making up around 30 percent of all malaria cases and deaths. The scale of these latest campaigns across the continent forms part of crucial efforts to drive malaria cases and deaths down further.
