Best buys for Africa: Expanded malaria intervention

Fast-track Analysis

Despite the progress made against malaria throughout the world, malaria prevalence has not fallen: in ten (10) Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries, the number of malaria cases reported has an increase of more than 20% between 2016 and 2017. Long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLIN) are generally considered the most cost-effective of vector control strategies, and, despite several campaigns of mass distribution, the percentage of the population with access to a LLIN is estimated at only 56%. The intervention analyzed is to scale-up the coverage of LLINs; that is, to increase the percentage of the SSA population with access to a LLIN, from 56% to 75% via one (1) mass distribution (door-to-door) campaign, during the course of a calendar year. The benefit-cost ratios calculated for four regions of SSA are:  Southern (0.4), Eastern (2.9), Western (11.6), and Central (27.5).