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C h a pt er 1 5


Addressing the Links among Agriculture, Malaria, and Development in Africa


Kwadwo Asenso-Okyere, Felix A. Asante, Jifar Tarekegn, and Kwaw S. Andam


T


he global impact of malaria on human health, productivity, and general well-being is profound, and Africa has been particularly hard hit. In 2006, more than 90 percent of deaths from malaria occurred in Africa, where 45


of the 53 countries are endemic for the disease (WHO 2008). Malaria costs Africa more than US$12 billion annually, and it slows economic growth in African coun- tries by as much as 1.3 percent per year (WHO 2010). Children and women (particularly pregnant women) in Africa are most vul-


nerable to malaria attacks. The potential impact of malaria for women engaged in agriculture, especially food production, can be substantial. Women perform nearly all the tasks associated with subsistence food production in Africa. They account for about 70 percent of agricultural workers and 60 to 80 percent of those producing foodcrops for household consumption and sale, and they also raise and market livestock (Todaro 2000; FAO 2010). Since the majority of the continent’s population is rural, the effects of the disease on agriculture, health, and develop- ment are widespread. Poor, rural farmers can pay quite a high cost for preventive measures and treat-


ment. In Kenya and Nigeria, for example, estimates show annual treatment costs for small-scale farmers as high as 5 percent and 13 percent, respectively, of total household expenditure (WHO 1996). The burden is similar in other countries. To emphasize: this is the cost borne by a household of poor smallholder farmers for treat- ment of a single disease. Removing malaria as a constraint could free resources for household productivity and local development. While most people can readily grasp the disease’s impact on smallholder pro- ductivity and development, the impact of agriculture development on the disease is


This brief is based on the authors’ IFPRI Discussion Paper (861) The Linkages between Agriculture and Malaria: Issues for Policy, Research, and Capacity Strengthening (Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute, 2009).


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