Climate variability and change as an emerging operational challenge to malaria control among district malaria focal persons in Dar es Salaam Tanzania

Malaria transmission in Tanzania has declined significantly over the past decade, following the scale-up of vector control and case management interventions. However, climate change may threaten these gains through long-term changes in climatic conditions that could influence mosquito breeding patterns and transmission dynamics. Short-term and seasonal fluctuations in rainfall and temperature, may also influence malaria risk and disrupt vector control activities, particularly during heavy rainfall. District malaria focal persons are responsible for implementing and coordinating malaria control strategies at the local level, yet their perceptions of these climate-related operational challenges remain undocumented. This study explored the perspectives of district malaria focal persons in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, regarding climate-related operational challenges to malaria control efforts. An exploratory qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured key informant interviews with all five District malaria focal persons in the Dar es Salaam Region between November and December 2024. Interviews were conducted in Swahili, audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, translated into English, and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis guided by Braun and Clarke’s framework with the aid of NVivo version 14 software. Three major themes emerged. First, malaria burden had declined substantially, although hotspots persisted in peripheral and poorly drained urban areas. Second, participants perceived rainfall, flooding, and temperature as important factors influencing malaria transmission. Some participants interpreted irregular rainfall and unusual weather patterns as evidence of climate change, while heavy rainfall was perceived to disrupt larviciding by washing away treatments. Third, operational challenges included weak integration with meteorological services, reliance on public weather broadcasts, funding constraints, and community misconceptions. Participants perceived weather and climate-related conditions as relevant to malaria transmission and the implementation of vector control activities. Strengthening collaboration between malaria control programmes and the Tanzania Meteorological Authority (TMA), and integrating weather forecasts and seasonal climate information into malaria planning, may improve operational preparedness. As the study did not analyze long-term meteorological trends or link climatic data with malaria-surveillance records, further research is needed to assess climate trends and evaluate locally appropriate early-warning approaches.