Gates Foundation Funds Historical Research on Malaria Control in Africa
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is among the organizations that have spent hundreds of millions of dollars annually to control malaria and reduce mosquitoes in Africa. This funding supports ongoing efforts to combat a disease that disproportionately affects African populations, accounting for about 95% of the world's total cases and deaths. Despite these significant investments, Melissa Graboyes, an associate professor of history at the University of Oregon, argues that past and present interventions have largely failed to stop malaria transmission. Her research, which includes studying archival materials from the Zanzibar National Archives, the WHO's Archives, the Rockefeller Foundation, and British colonial archives, along with over 100 interviews, suggests that a historical perspective is crucial for understanding the limitations of malaria eradication efforts. Graboyes' work highlights that mosquitoes are highly adaptable, and past attempts, from draining swamplands to spraying DDT, have not led ...
