“…These global estimates are a direct result of an increasing ability to collate and assimilate large data sets that also allow the monitoring of trends in malaria incidence and parasite prevalence. These broad-scale estimates from countries where malaria is endemic (178), together with specific country examples (23,24,35,87,174,227,328,329), have highlighted the recent trend of decreasing malaria transmission intensity in many areas of endemicity, and these observations, at least in part, have stimulated (or restimulated) the malaria elimination agenda (8b, 276). While there is considerable debate in the malaria community about the rationale and likely success of elimination programs, the ongoing discussions have led to a reevaluation of current strategies to reduce or abrogate the transmission of malaria parasites.…”