>The way we think of flu in the west is roughly similar to how Africans think of malaria: a pain in the butt but not the end of the world. Imagine what we would do if rich Africans arrived and started handing out face masks during flu season. We'd probably do what Africans do with malaria nets: say thanks and throw them in a drawer.

That's incredibly misleading, ignorant, and even disrespectful. First of all, malaria is a scourge that's not even comparable with common flu (even thought the latter, through sheer virulence, rivals the former in number of anual deaths). Secondly, you are absolutely talking out of your butt when you say "Africans throw our nets in the drawer"; much to the contrary, these sort initiatives are constantly shown to be one of the most effective ways to reduce malaria infections, indeed one of the most effective ways to prevent suffering in general.