Malaria is very common in SubSaharan Africa. The predominant species is Plasmodium falciparum . Plasmodium falciparum is the most dangerous of the four species of human malaria. Malaria causes an estimated 2.7 million deaths per year, with most of these deaths occurring in Africa. Ninety percent of the world's malaria cases occur in Africa.
Chloroquine resistance is widespread in Africa.
Now, malaria outbreaks are being reported in some locations of Africa that had been previously thought to be at elevations too high for malaria transmission, such as the highlands of Kenya. Some scientists hypothesize this is due to climatic change, while others hypothesize that this is due to human migration. Also, malaria has resurged in certain locations of Africa that had previously had effective control programs, such as Madagascar, South Africa, and Zanzibar. Malaria also occurs in portions of Iran and the Middle East. Plasmodium falciparum is common, as is Plasmodium vivax .