I'm reposting this because it's been a day or two since I tried to post it before. Apologies if this is a multiple post.

This whole DDT thing is a bunch of crap. For one thing, the WHO never banned it. The US did, after we eradicated malaria (although screens and indoor climate controls had a big part to play there too). The WHO has always advocated limited indoor use of DDT to combat the spread of malaria. The problem is, people don't take kindly to government workers coming into their homes to spray crap on their walls that stains them brown.

DDT is not a magic bullet to solve the problem of malaria in the third world. The roots of the problem are corruption, poverty, and incompetence (many times caused by centuries of European colonialism). DDT has only limited effectiveness - mosquitos quickly become resistant to it if it is sprayed in large quantities. Bed nets and anti malaria drugs would be a better option. I guess DDT could be used as part of a rotating cycle of pesticide, but there has never been anything to stop governments from doing that anyway.