Malaria and Sanitation in Colonial Lagos: A Historical Appraisal

The endemic and devastating nature of malarial fever in Africa in the later end of the nineteenth century is worthy of examination for a number of reasons. First is the fact that the ailment as it adversely affected the colonization process in most British territories in West Africa influenced highly pragmatic policies from the government and the indigenous population. Second is the fact that the ailment attracted a large number of social issues - worthy of mention are the racial and demographic problems generated during this period. This paper investigates and invariably provides a historical explanation to the sanitary policies adopted by the government in one of the earliest British colonial settlements in West Africa, Lagos. In fulfilling this herculean yet intriguing task, this paper relied wholly on archival and written materials.