Determinants of HIV/AIDS Spread in West Africa: Does Public Corruption Matter?

Abstract

ECOWAS countries, in addition to face increasing health problems related to HIV/AIDS epidemic, experience a high rate of public corruption. Health sector is particularly marked by corruption so that the prevalence seems to coexist with corruption. In this respect, our study aims to assess the influence of public corruption on the evolution of HIV/AIDS. Our econometric analysis of panel data shows that public corruption promotes expansion of HIV prevalence in ECOWAS countries. Besides, we find that literacy of the girl significantly contributes to reduce the prevalence in short run. In long run, the results indicate that the higher is the level of education the higher infection possibilities are while a higher number of health professionals and an increase in health expenditure retard the spread of the epidemic. From these results, we conclude that strategies for reducing prevalence of HIV/AIDS should be focused on the fight against corruption, improving education of young girl and a more efficient allocation of resources in health system.