What is the economic impact of malaria?
When considering the economic impact of malaria, it is important to look at the disease as both a cause and an effect of poverty and a major strain on economic development [14]. There is a noticeable gap in prosperity between countries with malaria and countries without malaria that has become wider every year [14]. A comparison, or rather more of a contrast, of average per capita GDP in 1995, modified for equivalence of purchasing power, between countries with malaria and countries without malaria has a striking fivefold disparity ($1,526 USD versus $8,268 USD) [10]. Between 1965 and 1990, the average per capita GDP has risen only 0.4% per year in countries where malaria is common, compared to 2.4% per year in other countries [8]. For example, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it was a major factor in the slow economic development of the American southern states! [3] Even though mostly tropical regions are affected, malaria can reach some temperate zones with extreme seas
