Gingrich Chris D, Ricotta Emily, Kahwa Amos, Kahabuka Catherine, Koenker Hannah
Eastern Mennonite University, 1200 Park Road, Harrisonburg, VA, 22802, USA.
Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, Baltimore, USA.
Malar J. 2017 Jul 14;16(1):285. doi: 10.1186/s12936-017-1929-2.
Universal coverage campaigns for long-lasting insecticide-treated nets do not always reach the goal of one net for every two household members, and even when ownership of at least one net per household is high, many households may not own enough nets. The retail market provides these households options for replacing or increasing the number of nets they own with products that best fit their needs since a variety of net shapes, sizes, and colours are available. Hence, it is important to understand the factors affecting private net demand. This study explores private demand for nets in Tanzania using a discrete choice experiment. The experiment provides participants the option to buy nets with their own money, and thus should prove more accurate than a hypothetical survey of net preferences.
Nearly 800 participants sampled in two regions showed an overall strong demand for nets, with 40% choosing to buy a net across all seven combinations of net prices and characteristics such as size, shape, and insecticide treatment. Only 8% of all participants chose not to buy a single net. A key factor influencing demand was whether a participant's household currently owned sufficient nets for all members, with rural participants showing lower net coverage and greater demand than urban participants. Both poor and less poor households showed strong evidence of making purchase decisions based on more than price alone. Mean willingness-to-pay values for a net started at US$1.10 and grew by US$0.50-1.40 for various attributes such as rectangular shape, large size, and insecticide treatment. The impact of price on demand was negative but small, with elasticity values between -0.25 and -0.45.
The results suggest that private demand for nets in Tanzania could potentially supplement future coverage campaigns. Net manufacturers and retailers should advertise and promote consumers' preferred net attributes to improve sales and further expand net access and coverage. To overcome household liquidity concerns and best replicate the experiment results, policy makers should consider making credit available for interested buyers.
长效驱虫蚊帐普及运动并不总能实现每两名家庭成员拥有一顶蚊帐的目标，即便每户至少拥有一顶蚊帐的比例很高，但许多家庭可能仍没有足够的蚊帐。由于市场上有各种形状、尺寸和颜色的蚊帐，零售市场为这些家庭提供了选择，使他们能够用最适合自身需求的产品来更换或增加所拥有的蚊帐数量。因此，了解影响私人蚊帐需求的因素很重要。本研究采用离散选择实验来探究坦桑尼亚的私人蚊帐需求。该实验让参与者有机会用自己的钱购买蚊帐，因此应比假设性的蚊帐偏好调查更准确。
在两个地区抽样的近800名参与者对蚊帐总体需求强劲，在蚊帐价格与尺寸、形状和杀虫剂处理等特征的所有七种组合中，有40%的人选择购买一顶蚊帐。所有参与者中只有8%的人选择一顶蚊帐都不买。影响需求的一个关键因素是参与者的家庭目前是否为所有成员都拥有足够的蚊帐，农村参与者的蚊帐覆盖率低于城市参与者，需求却高于城市参与者。贫困家庭和较不贫困的家庭都有充分证据表明，他们的购买决策不仅仅基于价格。一顶蚊帐的平均支付意愿值起于1.10美元，对于诸如长方形、大尺寸和经过杀虫剂处理等各种属性，支付意愿值会增加0.50 - 1.40美元。价格对需求的影响为负但较小，弹性值在 - 0.25至 - 0.45之间。
结果表明，坦桑尼亚对蚊帐的私人需求可能会补充未来的普及运动。蚊帐制造商和零售商应宣传并推广消费者偏好的蚊帐属性，以提高销量并进一步扩大蚊帐的可及性和覆盖率。为克服家庭流动性方面的担忧并最好地复制实验结果，政策制定者应考虑为有兴趣的买家提供信贷。
