Does democracy reduce the HIV epidemic? Evidence from Kenya

Antoine Marsaudon (1, 2) , Josselin Thuilliez (3)

1 PSE - Paris School of Economics
2 PSE - Paris-Jourdan Sciences Economiques
3 CES - Centre d'économie de la Sorbonne

Does democracy help Kenyan citizens to struggle against the HIV epidemic? Yet, very little attention has been devoted to establish whether political regimes react differently to the HIV infection. Using an electoral definition of democracy makes a contribution in understanding which aspects of political rules matter to manage the disease. Using a difference-in-difference design that draws upon pre-existing variations in HIV intensity and cohort's exposure to democracy, we find that a person living under democracy is less likely to have a HIV infection. Further, we present some evidence of ethnic favoritism and gender disparities during periods of non-democracy.

Mots clés: Institution; Democracy; HIV; Health; Kenya

Domaines: Economies et finances

Antoine Marsaudon, Josselin Thuilliez. Does democracy reduce the HIV epidemic? Evidence from Kenya. 2016. ⟨halshs-01400833⟩