What is the mission of Netting Nations?
Netting Nations is a non-profit organization dedicated to the prevention of malaria through the distribution of insecticide-treated mosquito nets, or ITNs.

Is Netting Nations a registered non-profit?
Yes, Netting Nations is a charitable institution that has been granted federal tax exemption status under Section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code.  Therefore, your donation is tax deductible.

Why is malaria?
Though malaria is virtually non-existent in the continental United States and in Europe, it continues to be one of the biggest disease killers in the world.  It is estimated that between 1 and 3 million people die from malaria each year, 90% of those deaths occurring in Sub-Saharan Africa .  One out of 20 African children dies of malaria before the age of 5, a demographic that also accounts for 70% of all malaria deaths—That's equivalent to one child dying from malaria every 30 seconds, or 7 jumbo jets full of children dying each day ! 
                       

Malaria is a public health problem in over 100 countries worldwide, inhabited by some 40% of the world population  (i.e. over 2 billion people). It has been estimated that the annual incidence of malaria worldwide may be in the order of 515 million clinical cases, 90% of these being accounted for by the countries located in Africa .  In addition to children, other high-risk groups include women during pregnancy and those infected with HIV/AIDS, as well as refugees, displaced persons, or labor forces entering into endemic areas.

What exactly is malaria?
Malaria is a common and serious tropical disease. It is a protozoan infection transmitted to human beings by mosquitoes biting mainly between sunset and sunrise. Human malaria is caused by four species of Plasmodium protozoa: Plasmodium falciparum, P.vivax, P. ovale and P.malariae. When an infected mosquito pierces a person's skin to take a blood meal, sporozoites in the mosquito's saliva enter the bloodstream and migrate to the liver. Within 30 minutes of being introduced into the human host, they infect hepatocytes, multiplying asexually and asymptomatically for a period of 6–15 days. Once in the liver these organisms differentiate to yield thousands of merozoites which, following rupture of their host cells, escape into the blood and infect red blood cells, thus beginning the erythrocytic stage of the life cycle. The parasite escapes from the liver undetected by wrapping itself in the cell membrane of the infected host liver cell.

How is malaria contracted?
Malaria is passed to humans when a female mosquito carrying Plasmodium sporozoites in their salivary glands bites a person.  Ironically, a previously non-infected female mosquito becomes infected when it takes blood away from an infected human. Only female mosquitoes feed on blood, thus males do not transmit the disease. The females of the Anopheles genus of mosquito prefer to feed at night. They usually start searching for a meal at dusk, and will continue throughout the night until taking a meal. It is for this reason that mosquito bed nets (ITNs) are so effective in preventing the spread of malaria.

Why are children under 5 and pregnant women particularly susceptible to malaria?
Young children take time to build up resistance to malaria. If they get malaria when very young their bodies are often not strong enough to beat it and they may die. However, if a child survives and is bitten repeatedly by infected mosquitoes they gradually build up some resistance to the malaria parasite. The older, stronger child has a much better chance of fighting the disease and not dying.

Generally speaking, the consequences of severe malaria include coma and death if untreated.  Splenomegaly (enlarged spleen), severe headache, cerebral ischemia, hepatomegaly (enlarged liver), hypoglycemia, and hemoglobinuria with renal failure may occur. Renal failure may cause blackwater fever, where hemoglobin from lysed red blood cells leaks into the urine. Severe malaria can progress extremely rapidly and cause death within hours or days.  In the most severe cases of the disease fatality rates can exceed 20%, even with intensive care and treatment .  In endemic areas, treatment is often less satisfactory and the overall fatality rate for all cases of malaria can be as high as one in ten .  Over the longer term, developmental impairments have been documented in children who have suffered episodes of severe malaria .

How much do long-lasting insecticide treated nets, or ITNs, cost?
Each ITN costs about US $5 . Not only will we buy them, we will make sure they are properly utilized in order to maximize their effectiveness.

Why Nets?
Insecticide-treated mosquito nets, or ITNs, are one of the most effective methods for the prevention of malaria in Sub-Saharan Africa.  For every 1000 ITNs distributed, 5.5 children's lives are saved.

How will the money raised be spent?
Nearly 100% of all donations are used for the purchase and distribution of ITNs in both surgical and large-scale anti-malarial projects.  We take great pride in seeing that your donations serve those who are most in need via a highly efficient process.

How will we know where all the money raised is spent?
Netting Nations prides itself on internal transparency.  We understand that people have become frustrated and even disenchanted with large corporate NGOs.  In response, Netting Nations will provide updated information on our website about what monies have been raised and where those resources are going by detailing how your donations are being spent.  As a registered charity we have a legal responsibility to demonstrate that we do what we say we will do. Complete transparency is at the heart of what we are doing.

Who is behind Netting Nations?
All sorts of people! Ike Stranathan, Ben Kingston, David Broyles, Ana Samarjian, Bernard Kahiga, Ganisha Sethi, Alison Fiori, Roger Cox and Calvin Lai all set this organization in motion.  Further, many other people around the world have gotten involved, including businesses and policy makers.