Around $4 trillion of additional global economic output could be generated by 2030 if malaria reduction goals were achieved, according to a new report.
“Malaria is not just a health issue — it’s a high-stakes economic and strategic threat that taxes the US bottom line, weakens supply chains, and sidelines Africa,” researchers for Malaria No More and Corporate Council on Africa wrote.
The study’s authors argued that every dollar invested by the US in malaria control in Africa generates $5.80 in economic growth. American companies could also benefit from an additional $1.5 billion in exports to malaria-endemic African nations, they said.
Since 2000, investments in reducing malaria have prevented more than 2 billion cases and nearly 13 million deaths, according to the World Health Organization, but recent foreign aid cuts are putting programs to control and eliminate the disease at risk.