This is a huge problem. How will Mosquito Ministry be able to make a difference?
There is an old adage that says “It takes a village to raise a child.” The same can be said of preventing malaria. It will take efforts by many to eradicate this infectious disease.
Mosquito Ministry is working in tandem with other organizations to educate and provide nets for people in malaria and Zika affected areas. We support other organizations such as Against Malaria who are working to eradicate the disease.
Your donation WILL save lives. You may donate to Mosquito Ministry either directly or through our partnership with Against Malaria. The important thing is that you help.
What impact does malaria and Zika have?
In some countries, 30-50% of the people admitted into the hospitals, 50% of doctor’s visits, and 40% of the money the government spends on health is related to malaria. What could those countries do for their people with the money and time that malaria consumes? Education, jobs, roads and buildings, food, vaccines, etc.
Malaria costs Africa about $12 billion every year. This includes health care costs, missed days from work, days lost in education, loss of investment and tourism, and decreased productivity due to brain damage from celebral malaria in those who contract the disease but don’t die. This disease is totally preventable. It isn’t hard to imagine all the good that could be done with that money instead.
Zika causes fewer economic issues than malaria because the symptoms disappear in a week or so, however if a person is bitten while pregnant, the child will likely have permanent brain defects.
What about a vaccine?
As of 2021, there is only one vaccine that is widely available. It’s called the RTS,S or Mosquirix, and has a low efficacy rate; only 36% over four years. There is also currently a vaccine in the works called R21. In trials it has shown a 75% efficacy rate, although it is currently unavailable for the public. This leaves nets as one of the most effective and reliable options. Until a vaccine comes out with an efficacy even higher than R21, nets will still be needed in large supply due to their effectiveness and their ability to save a large number of people for a low price.
If it is cheaper to prevent malaria than to treat it why don’t countries focus on that?
The cost of prevention is too high for most of the world’s poorest countries. Rich countries like China were able to prevent Malaria in Chinese provinces with only a small percentage of their overall spending on health. On the other hand, if a poorer African nation were to spend the same amount of money, it could be as much as one-fifth of their entire public health budget. When viewed that way, it is easy to see that there needs to be a cheaper way to stop malaria in poor countries. Nets are the answer.
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