Swarming Around Malaria

Malaria is clearly the disease du jour -- and it waited a long time to get basked in the spotlight. Two weeks ago in New York, at the UN Millennium Development Goals Malaria Summit (the third malaria summit in so many years), funders announced roughly $3 billion in new (and gently used) funds for malaria control, treatment, and research. View a webcast of the event.Also two weeks ago in Washington, Resources for the Future brought together leading advocates and a few dissenters to discuss the proposed AMFm (Affordable Medicines Facility for malaria). This week in York England, a conference on artemisinin will bring together health and agriculture experts to sort out how to ensure adequate supplies of the key ingredient in the only effective malaria drug available. There are countless other meetings involving many of the same people to talk about the eradication goal declared last year at the Gates Foundation Malaria Forum, and how to leave no stone unturned in trying to achieve it. I don't want to revert to last year's debate about whether that is a feasible goal -- for more on that, see my blog from the Forum. Increased attention to the extraordinarily complex subject of malaria prevention and treatment is welcome. But in addition to tips on avoiding jetlag, those in the malaria-o-sphere might benefit from a few tips on how to avoid some of the pitfalls of being hot.

1. Attention to products without attention to product delivery is a dead-end.
2. Externalities and economies of scale call for large-scale implementation, while mosquito and human behavior call for local solutions. Find the right balance.
3. Be careful not to let the experts drown out experience.
4. A multi-pronged approach to malaria requires coordination of those prongs, with special attention needed across and within governments.