Japan's insect repellent culture will save the world! NPO S.O.L. (Seed of Lanka)'s 10-year project: Making 'screen doors' the norm worldwide
NPO S.O.L. announces a vision as part of April Dream to spread Japanese screen door (AMIDO) culture to Sri Lanka to prevent dengue fever by introducing easy-to-build, affordable screen doors.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 1, 2026 at 16:20
- 🔍 Collected: April 1, 2026 at 08:05
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 22, 2026 at 08:46 (504h 41m after Collected)
[About NPO S.O.L. (Seed of Lanka)]
We provide information about Sri Lanka and promote cultural exchange while planning and operating educational facility visiting tours and business matching tours in Sri Lanka. Our organization supports April Dream, an initiative to make April 1st a day to share dreams. This press release is the dream of 'NPO S.O.L. (Seed of Lanka).'
[The Great Flood in Sri Lanka]
In December 2025, Sri Lanka was in a terrible state. Due to a cyclone, 20% of the country's land was hit by flood disasters.
After a flood, dengue fever breaks out.
This means there might be a major outbreak this year like the one in 2017... Such anxiety crossed my mind.
Therefore, our first activity for 2026 was decided: we will run a crowdfunding campaign to install AMIDO in the neonatal wards of hospitals.
[The Beginning of the AMIDO Project]
Since 2022, S.O.L. has been spreading the message, 'Japan's insect repellent culture will save the world!' and has been promoting simple screen doors in Sri Lanka together with our friends.
Five years prior to that, in 2017, Sri Lanka experienced a massive dengue fever outbreak, said to be the worst 'since the country began.' At that time, I was staying in Sri Lanka and felt something was wrong.
Dengue fever is an infectious disease transmitted by mosquitoes. Normally, one would think, 'I don't want to get bitten by mosquitoes.'
However, no one applies insect repellent cream. They don't use mosquito coils either, saying they are 'bad for the throat' or 'a waste.'
Due to Buddhist teachings, they avoid killing living things, so they hesitate to smack a mosquito.
And what was most shocking was that windows and front doors were left wide open without screen doors.
Mosquitoes and flies were flying freely inside the houses.
That's right. The very concept of 'insect repellent' did not exist there.
I was desperate. I applied insect repellent cream, lit mosquito coils, and tried to protect at least my immediate surroundings.
Seeing me like that, the local people laughed and said:
'Japanese people are so nervous.'
[The Birth of AMIDO]
After returning to Japan, when I told my friends about this experience, the president of a construction company who is a member of S.O.L. took action, saying, 'Then let's make simple screen doors.'
It was designed so that anyone could install it using materials available at home centers.
It is cheap, and even if it breaks, you can fix it yourself. It's a 'technology that stays close to daily life.'
The windows of houses in Sri Lanka vary in size and shape, so off-the-shelf screen doors do not fit.
We provide information about Sri Lanka and promote cultural exchange while planning and operating educational facility visiting tours and business matching tours in Sri Lanka. Our organization supports April Dream, an initiative to make April 1st a day to share dreams. This press release is the dream of 'NPO S.O.L. (Seed of Lanka).'
[The Great Flood in Sri Lanka]
In December 2025, Sri Lanka was in a terrible state. Due to a cyclone, 20% of the country's land was hit by flood disasters.
After a flood, dengue fever breaks out.
This means there might be a major outbreak this year like the one in 2017... Such anxiety crossed my mind.
Therefore, our first activity for 2026 was decided: we will run a crowdfunding campaign to install AMIDO in the neonatal wards of hospitals.
[The Beginning of the AMIDO Project]
Since 2022, S.O.L. has been spreading the message, 'Japan's insect repellent culture will save the world!' and has been promoting simple screen doors in Sri Lanka together with our friends.
Five years prior to that, in 2017, Sri Lanka experienced a massive dengue fever outbreak, said to be the worst 'since the country began.' At that time, I was staying in Sri Lanka and felt something was wrong.
Dengue fever is an infectious disease transmitted by mosquitoes. Normally, one would think, 'I don't want to get bitten by mosquitoes.'
However, no one applies insect repellent cream. They don't use mosquito coils either, saying they are 'bad for the throat' or 'a waste.'
Due to Buddhist teachings, they avoid killing living things, so they hesitate to smack a mosquito.
And what was most shocking was that windows and front doors were left wide open without screen doors.
Mosquitoes and flies were flying freely inside the houses.
That's right. The very concept of 'insect repellent' did not exist there.
I was desperate. I applied insect repellent cream, lit mosquito coils, and tried to protect at least my immediate surroundings.
Seeing me like that, the local people laughed and said:
'Japanese people are so nervous.'
[The Birth of AMIDO]
After returning to Japan, when I told my friends about this experience, the president of a construction company who is a member of S.O.L. took action, saying, 'Then let's make simple screen doors.'
It was designed so that anyone could install it using materials available at home centers.
It is cheap, and even if it breaks, you can fix it yourself. It's a 'technology that stays close to daily life.'
The windows of houses in Sri Lanka vary in size and shape, so off-the-shelf screen doors do not fit.