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GiveWell Grant Rationale: AMF Insecticide-Treated Nets in DRC (June 2024)

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givewell.org·givewell.org/research/grants/AMF-LLIN-DRC-June-2024

This resource is a GiveWell grant rationale for a malaria net distribution program in the DRC, unrelated to AI safety. It concerns global health philanthropy and cost-effectiveness analysis, not AI alignment, governance, or technical safety.

Metadata

Importance: 5/100organizational reportanalysis

Summary

GiveWell recommended a $41 million grant to the Against Malaria Foundation (AMF) in June 2024 to fund distribution of insecticide-treated nets in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2025-2026. The grant is estimated to be ~11x as cost-effective as unconditional cash transfers, protecting ~11 million people and averting ~6,600 child deaths. Key uncertainties include malaria burden data quality, net durability, and operational challenges in distribution.

Key Points

  • •GiveWell recommended $41M to AMF for ~7.9 million ITNs in the DRC, estimated to avert ~6,600 deaths in children under five.
  • •Cost-effectiveness estimated at ~11x unconditional cash transfers, with nets costing ~$2.38 to purchase and ~$3.10 to deliver each.
  • •Major uncertainties include subnational malaria burden data quality, next-generation net durability, and potential unrecorded net loss due to corruption/infrastructure.
  • •AMF will oversee procurement, monitoring, logistics, staff training, and community outreach in partnership with local and international organizations.
  • •Grant targets high-burden geographies in DRC that would otherwise not be served by mass distribution campaigns.

Cached Content Preview

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Note: This page summarizes the rationale behind a GiveWell-recommended grant to the Against Malaria Foundation (AMF). The information below reflects our views at the time we made the grant decision and does not reflect any information we have learned or work we have done since that point. AMF staff reviewed this page prior to publication. 

 

 
 
 

 In a nutshell

 In June 2024, GiveWell recommended a $41 million grant to the Against Malaria Foundation (AMF) to support the delivery of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 2025 and 2026. 1 

 GiveWell recommended this grant because we estimate that it will be approximately 11 times as cost-effective as unconditional cash transfers. We believe this grant is cost-effective because:

 
 ITNs are relatively inexpensive to purchase (~$2.38 each in the DRC) and deliver (~$3.10 each in the DRC). ( more )

 We think most people who access nets through campaigns would not otherwise have access to them. ( more )

 We believe that malaria is a significant cause of child mortality in the areas of the DRC this grant is likely to fund. ( more )

 We think nets are effective at reducing child mortality related to malaria (~ 56% reduction in the DRC).

 
 We have the following reservations about this grant:

 
 We have substantial uncertainty about the level of malaria burden in the areas this grant would fund, due to: 1) concerns about both the national and subnational data available to us, and, 2) limited confidence in an adjustment we make in our CEA to account for what the malaria burden in the DRC would be if no ITNs were used. ( more )

 Due to limited data, we have substantial uncertainty about the durability of next-generation nets (regardless of location) and some additional uncertainty about the durability of nets in the DRC specifically. ( more )

 We are uncertain about how many children would be protected by nets in the absence of a mass-distribution campaign, though we think this grant still looks cost-effective even under pessimistic assumptions. ( more )

 We are concerned that there may be unrecorded net loss during net distribution campaigns in the DRC due to operational challenges, such as poor infrastructure and corruption, and limitations to last-mile monitoring. ( more )

 
 
 Published: June 2025 

 
 
 

 Summary

 
 
 

 Background

 Malaria is a disease caused by Plasmodium parasites which are transmitted to people through the bites of infected mosquitoes. Symptomatic cases involve flu-like symptoms including fever, which can progress to severe illness or death. Distribution of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) is one of two main WHO-recommended strategies for malaria vector control. Our full research report on ITNs is available here .

 In June 2024, GiveWell recommended a $41 million grant to the Against Malaria Foundation (AMF) to support the delivery of ITNs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 2025 and 2026. AMF is one of GiveWe

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Resource ID: 88a393a94524cda6