The World Health Organization (WHO) significantly decreased its previous estimate of the number of people who contract malaria each year, attributing the change to rapid urbanization in Asia that has led to the destruction of forest habitats for disease-spreading mosquitoes. According to a report, the WHO stated that 247 million individuals worldwide were infected with malaria in 2006, as opposed to its earlier estimate of 350 million to 500 million annually. The new report also lowered the global death toll from the disease by approximately 10 percent compared to the UN agency's previous report from three years ago, citing improvements in calculation methods as the primary reason for the change. The World Health Organization stated that it is unclear if there was a decrease in cases and deaths from 2004 to 2006. A report revealed that 881,000 people died from malaria in 2006, which was lower than previous estimates of over 1 million deaths annually. Malaria mainly affects infants, children, and pregnant women. Public funding for malaria has been substantial in recent years, with organizations like the WHO, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Clinton Foundation receiving funds. The Roll Back Malaria Partnership of the WHO has called for an increase in funding for malaria to $3.4 billion per year from the current $1.2 billion to improve access to artemisinin-based drugs and insecticide-treated bed nets for prevention. Estimating global disease prevalence is challenging, leading public health experts to make significant revisions to their estimates. Last year, the WHO reduced its estimate of AIDS virus infections to 33 million from 40 million due to new data from India. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also increased its estimate of annual HIV infections by 40 percent through more precise reporting methods. WHO Director-General Margaret Chan stated that less than one-third of member states have reliable disease monitoring systems, emphasizing the importance of accurate information for decision-making. She announced that the malaria report will now be issued yearly to provide current data for reducing the disease burden. Chan highlighted the need for reliable information and analysis given the recent increase in funding and efforts to combat malaria. Novartis AG's Coartem drug is utilized for the treatment of malaria, and various other pharmaceutical companies, such as Austria's Intercell, are also working towards developing malaria vaccines. However, it is anticipated that these vaccines will not be available on the market for several years. Malaria is most common in Africa, with the WHO determining the number of cases based on climate data related to mosquito breeding conditions, as well as sample surveys. In 2006, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Tanzania were identified as the countries with the highest number of malaria-related deaths, according to the WHO. Outside of Africa, countries most affected included India, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Indonesia.