By Bunmi Yekini
For decades, the fight against malaria has relied on bed nets, insecticide sprays and medicines. But with more than 600,000 people still dying each year, mostly children in sub-Saharan Africa, the battle has been far from won. Now, a new tool is being hailed as a breakthrough, and Kenya is right at the center of its rollout.
This week, the World Health Organization (WHO) endorsed spatial repellents as an innovative method to help protect families from malaria and other insect-borne diseases. These small, paper-sized devices release a gentle active ingredient that repels mosquitoes from rooms, schools and semi-enclosed spaces. They are designed to be low-cost, long-lasting, and easy to use.
“This important milestone comes after more than 10 years of SC Johnson efforts and more than $100 million invested in the development, testing, production and deployment of our spatial repellent products,” said Fisk Johnson, Chairman and CEO of SC Johnson, the family-owned company behind the innovation. “From day one, this has been a not-for-profit initiative driven by our commitment to combat diseases that threaten hundreds of millions of people.”
Earlier this year, SC Johnson opened two high-speed production lines in Nairobi, capable of producing 20 million Guardian units annually. The move places Kenya at the frontline of a global public health milestone. The company is also set to open another line in Argentina in 2026, expanding access to millions more people.
For health advocates, the WHO endorsement is more than just technical approval, it’s validation of years of research and hope.
“There are over a billion people that would benefit from the SC Johnson Guardian and SC Johnson Mosquito Shield spatial repellents,” said Richard Allan, CEO of The MENTOR Initiative, a global public health partner. “Frankly, these are the first tools I’ve seen in 36 years that have the promise of doing that. These could be a real game changer.”
Clinical trials in Indonesia, Peru and Kenya, supported by Unitaid and the Gates Foundation, showed promising results: proper use of spatial repellents reduced the risk of malaria by up to 33 percent, with Guardian able to protect families for as long as one year.
For households in malaria-endemic regions, the endorsement could mean new hope. In Kenya, where many rural families still rely on mosquito nets and improvised protection methods, the availability of affordable repellents made locally may shift the balance in the fight against a disease that has stubbornly resisted eradication.
Since 2013, SC Johnson says it has reached more than 110 million people worldwide through its public health initiatives, with repellents distributed at no profit. The WHO’s recommendation, paired with prequalification listings for Guardian and Mosquito Shield, means that governments and aid agencies can now confidently procure these tools at scale.
“This achievement is only the beginning,” Johnson said. “Because of the passion and dedication of thousands of SC Johnson people around the world, we’re now able to see this vision come to life. The impact we’ve made together so far is just the start.”