BY ALETHIA WILLIAMS

Malaria claims the lives of one to three million people around the world every year, but most of these deaths could be prevented for as little as five dollars. The mosquito net, an inexpensive repellent-infused mesh net placed over a bed, could prove to be one of the most effect weapons against this devastating disease. Already, test runs of these nets have yielded highly encouraging results, reducing malaria cases by up to 63% in some areas. Scientists estimate that these nets could save the lives of up to 500,000 children a year in Africa, the continent hardest hit by the disease.

But the solution isn’t that easy. While there is widespread agreement that mosquito nets hold great potential for fighting the spread of malaria, a consensus has not yet been reached on the best way to distribute the nets. The international development community remains divided between those who believe the nets should be mass distributed for free in villages plagued by malaria-carrying mosquitoes, and those who advocate integrating the nets more organically into local economies, an approach called social marketing.

Approaches to Distribution
In an interview with the HPR, Joe Conlin, technical advisor to the American Mosquito Control Association, highlighted the economic complexity of the issue. “It’s kind of a chicken and egg situation,” he said. “Societies will be more productive if they don’t have malaria, and they won’t have malaria if they’re more productive. In some cases, you have to get them jumpstarted into that cycle."

The bed net costs about five U.S. dollars and has to be retreated with insecticide repellant for about seventy-five cents every six months to one year. Most villagers in sub-Saharan African countries, however, can afford neither the initial purchase nor the upkeep. But with the aid of private institutions and global healthcare projects, such as those funded by the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control, and the United States government, funds can be created to support the production and free distribution of nets. This approach has already been pursued successfully in a few locations, including Tanzania.

The problem with free distribution is sustainability. What happens to the villagers when the nets need to be retreated? What happens when the next generation of villagers needs a new supply of nets? If the bed nets are not a part of the local economy, many argue, then malaria prevention will only be temporary. However, making the nets a part of local economy – setting up industries that can produce and sell them at lower prices – could potentially solve the sustainability problem while simultaneously boosting local industry.

The Importance of Education
Mary Galinski, founder of The Malaria Foundation International and End Malaria Blue Ribbon Campaign and head of the Malaria Research Program at the Emory Vaccine Center, has done extensive work with netting in foreign countries. She told the HPR that while mosquito nets, repellants, and medications can be effective on their own, education is also essential: “Education is the key to the long-term solution; the people really get to know how this disease is caused, what they do to stop it, what they can do to treat it.”

Conlin agreed that education is necessary for mosquito nets to be effective. “Netting is not the sole answer,” he said. “We are finding in some cases, the mosquitoes that are transmitting malaria actually bite at times of the evening prior to people getting in the bed nets.” If people simply have the nets but lack an understanding of how to use them, their exposure to mosquitoes—and risk of infection—will not be meaningfully reduced.

Organizing for Change
As part of an effort to address this problem of a lack of awareness, Galinski’s foundation helped start Student Leaders Against Malaria. The organization brings together young people from America and Africa, allowing US students to become experienced with international development and African students to diffuse life-saving knowledge to the older generations. Perhaps, indeed, it will be through the accumulated small-scale efforts of organizations such as SLAM that society will become more conscious of the risk of malaria and the best ways to prevent it.

If at-risk African nations can find ways to spread education and awareness while increasing the accessibility of nets and other preventative tools, millions of African children could avoid infection and go on to live happy, healthy, malaria-free lives. And that seems like a goal worth striving for. ]]>http://hprsite.squarespace.com/a-promising-solution-012008/rss-comments-entry-1508403.xml