Targeted malaria elimination (TME), which comprises appropriate case management by village health workers, vector control, and mass drug administration, is currently being implemented through pilot projects in selected villages in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) and the scale-up of the intervention to the regional level are underway.

Based on mathematical modeling, extending the post-TME parasitemia-free period in the majority of villagers for as short as 200 days will substantially increase the chances of achieving the interruption of malaria transmission.

Immunogenicity of RTS,S is greater in older children, and the short-term malaria protective effect is stronger than the overall effect assessed over 1-2 years. The addition of mass RTS,S/AS01E vaccination to the TME arsenal could provide this much-needed additional protection.