Age-structured vaccination strategies in mathematical modeling of malaria transmission

Malaria is a global infectious disease, causing hundreds of thousands of deaths annually. This study presents an age-structured mathematical model for malaria vaccination that captures human and mosquito host interactions. Fundamental mathematical properties were established, and the stability of equilibria was analyzed in relation to the effective reproduction number $\left(R_e\right)$ . The system admits two equilibrium points: a malaria-free equilibrium and a malaria-endemic equilibrium. Analytical results showed that the malaria-free equilibrium is locally and globally asymptotically stable when $R_e<1$ . Conversely, the malaria-endemic equilibrium is globally asymptotically stable when $R_e>1$ . A sensitivity analysis of $R_e$ was performed to identify parameters influencing malaria transmission dynamics for prioritization in control strategies. The numerical results corroborate theoretical findings, illustrating that the model solutions converge to equilibrium states over time. This implies that with effective vaccinations, treatments, and insecticide vector control, malaria transmission could be reduced to nearly zero, potentially leading to complete eradication of the disease. This study offers key insights on the integration of vaccination with complementary malaria control strategies, informing public health planning for sustainable malaria control in endemic regions.