The Institutions of Mosquito Control and Malaria Prevention

Standard public health tools and markets might be ineffective to overcome collective action problems related to malaria, but individuals often face incentives to discover novel solutions. Such incentives and discoveries form emergent public health institutions, which help improve public health in voluntary ways tailored to the myriad subjective goals people have. In the context of malaria, these institutions turn mosquito control from a good that emits positive externalities into private, club, and common goods, whereby individuals face additional incentives to produce. The extent of this discovery process depends on the many inputs of mosquito control, in addition to local disease environments, and various economic, political, and social institutions. Endogenous public health institutions suggest we revise standard models of malaria, common notions of externalities and collective action problems related to disease, and standard public health tools. Overall, the voluntary responses people can take to provide mosquito control and resolve collective action problems suggest a greater appreciation for liberal institutions that encourage innovation and opportunities to advance civil society and self-governance. There is much more that can be done to lessen the burden of malaria and much more that is obtainable once people have greater opportunities to resolve collective action problems on their own.