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Abstract
A three-period overlapping-generations model is developed to investigate the impact on human capital investment decisions and income growth of lowered life expectancy as a result of diseases such as HIV/AIDS. We show that an increased probability of premature death leads to less investment in human capital, and consequently slower growth. We also empirically investigate the effect of HIV/AIDS on life expectancy in Sub-Saharan Africa and the role of health in the level of educational investments and growth for a broader set of countries. The empirical results show that HIV/AIDS has resulted in a substantial decline in life expectancy in African countries and falling life expectancies are indeed associated with lower educational attainment and slower economic growth world wide.