Is Aid Effective?

This study investigates a disaggregated form of foreign aid—aid targeted at combating HIV/AIDS.Specifically,it evaluates the effectiveness of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief(PEPFAR)in Africa by using the Difference-in-Differences estimation strategy.The outcome variables addressed are:the number of deaths due to HIV/AIDS,the number of people living(adult population)with HIV,the number of children between 0-14 living with HIV and the number of new HIV infections,and the percentage of people living with HIV who receive retroviral treatment.The PEPFAR program is found to be effective in reducing the number of HIV/AIDS related deaths,the number of adults living with HIV and the number of children living with HIV.Although PEPFAR has succeeded in expanding care and treatment of HIV/AIDS in Africa,it has no statistically significant impact on the number of people receiving antiretroviral treatment and on the HIV prevalence.