Civil War, Sexual Violence and HIV Infections: Evidence from the Democratic Republic of the Congo

This paper estimates the effect of sexual violence and economic vulnerability on HIV prevalence rates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We find that HIV prevalence rates are higher in conflict-affected regions than in non-conflict regions, and that sexual violence and economic vulnerability significantly affect HIV prevalence rates. The combined effect of civil war and sexual violence is positive and strongly significant. However, conflict-related economic vulnerability does not explain HIV infections.