The setting up of anesthesia units and any future planning in this field has to be considered in the context of the social and economic development of the country. The situation requires a different attitude towards the handling of anesthesia, where malnutrition, kwashiorkor and parasites are the dominant diseases. One sixth of the world's population is permanently undernourished, and the figure might even be higher in many “developing countries.” Problems of an esthesia in most areas in Africa include: (1) insufficient supply of drugs; (2) inadequate equipment; (3) lack of anesthetic manpower; and (4) underestimation of the importance of anesthesia.