Centre for Development Economics
and
Department of Economics, Delhi School of Economics

ANNOUNCE A SEMINAR

HIV Pandemic, Medical Brain Drain and
Economic Development in
Sub-Saharan Africa

by

Alok Bhargava
University of Houston


On Wednesday, August 20, 2008 at 1:50 p.m.

Venue : New Seminar Room [First Floor]
Department of Economics, Delhi School of Economics

All are cordially invited

This paper analyzes the factors affecting emigration of physicians from sub-Saharan countries and the effects of this medical brain drain on number of deaths due to AIDS and life expectancy using country-level longitudinal data at 3-year intervals for the period 1990-2004. Data were compiled on emigrating African physicians from the receiving 16 O.E.C.D. countries. A comprehensive longitudinal database is developed by merging the medical brain drain variables with recent data on HIV prevalence rates, public health expenditures, physicians’ wages, and economic and demographic variables. A triangular system of equations is estimated using 5 time observations for medical brain drain rates, number of deaths due to AIDS and life expectancy, taking into account the inter-dependence between these variables. The main findings from estimating random effects models are, first, that lower wages and higher HIV prevalence rates predict significantly higher medical brain drain from sub-Saharan Africa. Second, higher medical brain drain rates is associated with greater number of deaths due to AIDS but the effects of medical brain drain on life expectancy are not evident in this time frame. Overall, the empirical results underscore the need for higher expenditures on HIV prevention and treatment, and for improving economic conditions of physicians for mitigating the adverse consequences of HIV pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa.