Henk van den Berg PhD , Prof Hilma R Amwele PhD , Prof Basil D Brooke PhD , Lina E Fortelius MSc , Tanu Jain MD , Prof S H P Parakrama Karunaratne PhD , Nosiku S Munyinda PhD , Prof Yasmin Rubio-Palis PhD , Prof Rajpal S Yadav PhD , Prof Immo Kleinschmidt PhD
{"title":"DDT: last mile in the global phase-out of its use for disease vector control?","authors":"Henk van den Berg PhD , Prof Hilma R Amwele PhD , Prof Basil D Brooke PhD , Lina E Fortelius MSc , Tanu Jain MD , Prof S H P Parakrama Karunaratne PhD , Nosiku S Munyinda PhD , Prof Yasmin Rubio-Palis PhD , Prof Rajpal S Yadav PhD , Prof Immo Kleinschmidt PhD","doi":"10.1016/j.lanplh.2025.06.007","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), one of the persistent organic pollutants to be phased out globally under the Stockholm Convention, still continues to be used in some countries as an insecticide for malaria vector control. The global production and use of DDT has reduced substantially over the last 8 years, and the number of alternative insecticides for vector control has increased steadily, suggesting that a global phase-out of DDT is within reach. Only three countries, India, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, were still using DDT in 2023, and a few other countries are keeping the option open of using DDT for emergency response. The main challenges in the global elimination of DDT are that most of the alternative insecticides are less affordable compared with DDT and that the global progress in malaria control and elimination has stagnated. Consultation meetings with countries that intend to use DDT have enabled a sharing of experiences and challenges in phasing out DDT. This Personal View provides recommendations to attain a global phase-out of DDT and to address the problem of disposal of obsolete stocks.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48548,"journal":{"name":"Lancet Planetary Health","volume":"9 8","pages":"Article 101283"},"PeriodicalIF":21.6000,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Lancet Planetary Health","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2542519625001615","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), one of the persistent organic pollutants to be phased out globally under the Stockholm Convention, still continues to be used in some countries as an insecticide for malaria vector control. The global production and use of DDT has reduced substantially over the last 8 years, and the number of alternative insecticides for vector control has increased steadily, suggesting that a global phase-out of DDT is within reach. Only three countries, India, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, were still using DDT in 2023, and a few other countries are keeping the option open of using DDT for emergency response. The main challenges in the global elimination of DDT are that most of the alternative insecticides are less affordable compared with DDT and that the global progress in malaria control and elimination has stagnated. Consultation meetings with countries that intend to use DDT have enabled a sharing of experiences and challenges in phasing out DDT. This Personal View provides recommendations to attain a global phase-out of DDT and to address the problem of disposal of obsolete stocks.
期刊介绍:
The Lancet Planetary Health is a gold Open Access journal dedicated to investigating and addressing the multifaceted determinants of healthy human civilizations and their impact on natural systems. Positioned as a key player in sustainable development, the journal covers a broad, interdisciplinary scope, encompassing areas such as poverty, nutrition, gender equity, water and sanitation, energy, economic growth, industrialization, inequality, urbanization, human consumption and production, climate change, ocean health, land use, peace, and justice.
With a commitment to publishing high-quality research, comment, and correspondence, it aims to be the leading journal for sustainable development in the face of unprecedented dangers and threats.