"Survival: Lives In The Balance" is a landmark documentary series about global health. Four one-hour films take viewers into villages in the Philippines, Uganda, Niger and Bangladesh, where people suffer from diseases and conditions long since conquered in other parts of the world. Cameras following subjects from pregnancy to birth, through the formative years of a child's development and into adulthood to capture the pain of loss and witness the triumph of hope.
The Plant That Cures Malaria, Uganda:
Malaria threatens half of the world's population. Malaria killed Clovis's young daughter. Clovis learned too late that, if caught early, a three-day course of drugs easily cures malaria. The drug is called Coartem. The main ingredient is Arteminisin, a chemical extracted from the Artemisia plant. The drug is expensive. Most developing countries cannot afford to buy enough to meet the needs of their people. Clovis discovered he can easily grow Artemisia on his farm in Uganda. He has invested much of his family's resources into farming the plant. He's created a community of small farmers that can produce enough Artemisia to sell it in bulk to a processing company. A new company policy, however, may stand in the way of income for this cooperative of farmers.
