Twenty years ago malaria was eradicated from Sri Lanka. It was the showpiece success story of who's great campaign against the disease that its greatest investigator called 'the million murdering death'. But within a few years it was back. Worldwide, it more than doubled its numbers of reported cases in just five years.

The parasite and the mosquito have both shown a remarkable capacity for beating the scientist at his own game. But now, Sri Lanka's latest onslaught is one of few around the world that seems to be making headway. Is it just a temporary advance, doomed yet again to failure? Or is this a rare example of self help, backed up by effective collaboration between the West and the Third World, with a genuine promise of success?

Subtitles on Ceefax page 270