Income inequality and HIV/AIDS prevalence

Samuel K Annim, University of Cape Coast

Recent studies have investigated the relationship between income inequality and HIV/AIDS prevalence and established a strong positive relationship.These papers however have relied on normative conjectures, case studies and single cross country regression to assert the relative impact of inequality and health. This papers’ contribution adds to the few emerging regression papers that tests the significance between income inequality and HIV/AIDS. The study relies on data from seventy-nine (79) countries that cut across both geographical and economic strength.. Income inequality emerges significant and posits that lowering income inequality leads to a reduction in HIV/AIDS prevalence by thirteen log points. Discounting plausible unobserved country level effects that are either fixed or stochastic over time, the pooled estimates offer further incisive results. Education measured by the gross enrollment rate at upper secondary affirmed theoretical and empirical conjectures of a negative relationship.Redistributing income is therefore expected to minimize the absurd coping strategies that trigger risky sexual behaviour.