What role can trade policy play in the fight against malaria?

May be an odd sounding question, but at VoxEU.org Lucian Cernat argues for greater coherence between trade, foreign investment, and other malaria-related policy initiatives. In particular, technical assistance should prioritise the removal of "killer tariffs" on mosquito nets. He writes,

At first sight one would argue that trade policy cannot be called upon to contribute directly to this important public-health challenge. Yet, trade policy was seen as one additional tool to fight malaria by African leaders. In April 2000, at the African Summit on Roll Back Malaria in Nigeria, 39 African countries have pledged to remove taxes and tariffs on insecticide-treated nets and other malaria-related preventive materials and drugs (WHO 2003).

This was hailed as a quick and effective contribution that trade policy could make towards the eradication of malaria in Africa. But, more than a decade later, it turns out that quite a few countries severely affected by malaria still maintain tariffs on the importation of mosquito nets and other malaria-fighting products and drugs.

According to the information provided by the Malaria Taxes and Tariffs Advocacy Project (a joint project sponsored by the WHO and Gates Foundation), in August 2010, some 30 countries in Africa still maintained tariffs as high as 20% on ITNs.

Imposing a tariff on a life-saving product can be tantamount to a "killer tariff" for some poor African households who would have to choose between food or other essential products and a more expensive mosquito net.

Over 100 million people are living in malaria-endemic countries that still apply a tariff on mosquito nets. For the top African countries with the highest number of reported malaria cases in 2010, tariffs on mosquito nets are still between 5% and 35% and the mosquito net ownership ratios are very low, except in Gambia. The correlation is not very strong since ownership ratios are in some countries largely determined by (duty) free distribution of mosquito nets by donors and international agencies.

It should be noted that several countries (e.g. Kenya, Uganda, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria) have taken the right steps and have eliminated tariffs on mosquito nets. Furthermore, countries like Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Madagascar have explicitly created several duty-free tariff lines for products including "mosquito net" in their descriptions (thus avoiding customs classification misunderstanding or abuse). Other countries have announced that, even if tariffs are still officially in place, they would waive the tariffs on mosquito nets.

But, as long as some double-digit tariffs persist, several malaria-endemic countries seem to import negligible amounts of mosquito nets in commercial terms, despite low coverage rates among vulnerable groups.

Another reason for free trade.