On External Aid Effectiveness and School Enrolment: A Study on Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

This paper re-evaluates the external aid effectiveness on school enrolment in Sub-Saharan Africa and provides a piece of evidence on the relationship conditioned on the prevalence of malaria and HIV/AIDS. A panel dataset from 2010 to 2019 for 42 countries in sub-Saharan Africa was modelled and analyzed using a dynamic panel GMM technique. The results suggest a statistically significant positive effect of external aid on school enrolment – primary, secondary and tertiary school enrolment. However, when correlated with the HIV/AIDS and malaria diseases, the relationship turned insignificant and at best negative. That is, in the case where malaria and HIV/AIDS diseases are evident, external aid does not have a statistically significant positive impact on school enrolment. It therefore means that the level of aid effectiveness on school enrolment is contingent on malaria and HIV/AIDS diseases in the region. Hence, although the attraction of more external aid can increase school enrolment in Sub-Saharan Africa, it will be effective only if the HIV/AIDS and malaria diseases are eradicated.