Bill Gates’ genetically modified mosquito project has stalled in Burkina Faso. The country’s government has terminated the project, which is being implemented as part of its fight against malaria, and has ordered the destruction of all mosquitoes released into the wild.

Bill Gates’ artificial flies will be destroyed

Burkina Faso has halted its Target Malaria program, funded by Bill Gates, as part of its opposition to Western-backed projects. President Ibrahim Traoré announced that he wants all genetically modified mosquitoes and laboratory samples to be destroyed in the country. Any samples detected from now on will be confiscated and destroyed.

The program, launched in 2019, aimed to reduce malaria transmission within the population by releasing genetically modified mosquitoes into the wild. Initially launched in the Bana region, the project expanded to other regions over time. However, Traoré’s decision this week brought the project to an abrupt end.

The Burkina Faso government stated that the project has not been effective in combating malaria; on the contrary, it has observed an increase in malaria cases in the regions where it has been implemented. The government sees this as evidence of its skepticism towards Western countries’ activities in Africa.

Since Traoré’s arrival in power in 2022, Burkina Faso has been pursuing a policy aimed at limiting the influence of Western countries, particularly the US and France. This new decision is seen as a continuation of this policy.

Bill Gates’ genetically modified mosquito projects are also generating controversy in the Western world. Some critics have expressed doubts that these projects could be used for other purposes, such as mass vaccination. This raises the possibility that similar decisions to Burkina Faso’s could be seen in other African countries in the future.