"This is my first year planting. First I cleared all this land, then I planted with my wife. I was a migrant worker, but here I have a chance to settle down. It's a lot of work and there are a lot of mosquitoes. We have a child, but we left her in town with relatives - there's too much danger of her getting malaria out here."
Malaria is a disease that preys on the poor, and it offers no respite for those trying to escape the cycle of poverty. Often, individuals risk all of their little savings to rent or buy a plot of land, and need to re-invest all their income back into the enterprise to survive. Only essential expenditures can be allowed and illness can often tip the balance between success and failure. Viable agricultural opportunities are often in high exposure areas where children that can't work will be a liability if they contract an illness. As a result, families often endure extended separations to avoid exposing of children to increased risk of infection.
