**Abstract**

Vector control is an important component of malaria control. Human malaria is a mosquito-borne parasitic disease which causes up to a million deaths a year and is estimated to infect over 212 million people worldwide. It is present in 97 countries covering half of the world's population. Around 90% of deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa, especially Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Malaria is the most widespread mosquito-borne disease in Nigeria where it has a holoendemic status. Of the four malaria parasites in Africa, *Plasmodium falciparum* is the most common malaria species, while *Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto* is the predominant vector in Nigeria. This review discusses the challenges to control malaria in Nigeria which gives a larger picture of sub-Saharan Africa. These challenges include the adaptability of the anopheles mosquito to the environment, their diversity, and their different vectorial capacities. Despite all the efforts to control malaria, it is still a public health challenge in Nigeria and in sub-Saharan Africa. However, one of the basic challenges is the source which are the diverse breeding sites. This problem is enhanced by malariogenic activities of humans. Salient recommendations for vector control by nipping the malaria vector in the bud were identified and advocated.

**Keywords:** *Anopheles*, malaria, *Plasmodium*, vectors, Nigeria

#### **1. Introduction**

Human malaria is a parasitic disease caused by five species of *Plasmodium* (a protozoon) such as *P. falciparum*, *P. ovale*, *P. malariae*, *P. vivax*, and the zoonotic *P. knowlesi* in Asia. Globally, malaria causes up to a million deaths a year and is estimated to infect over 212 million people. It is present in 97 countries covering half of the world's population [1]. Around 90% of deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa, especially in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) [2]. It is an established fact that malaria kills over a million children every year in sub-Saharan Africa [1, 3].

As a vector-borne disease, malaria vector control is an important component of malaria control. The malaria parasite has a complex life cycle, having a series of stages in the mosquito and the human host. The transmission of malaria takes place when the parasite enters the host through the saliva of the insect during a blood meal. As mosquitoes continue to threaten human health and existence, there is a need to continually fight back by nipping the malaria vectors in the bud by diverse mosquito control methods.

These concerns necessitate preventive approaches to control malaria by mosquito control methods that involve "nipping in the bud" from the source of the malaria problem.
