The disease environment, schooling, and development outcomes: Evidence from Ethiopia∗

The disease environment in general, and malaria in particular, could help explain underdevelopment in many regions of the world, especially in Africa. Using data from Ethiopia, this paper provides evidence that local malaria risk is associated with worse local development outcomes. By combining information from a large-scale Ethiopian household survey with satellite-derived topographical information on 1,000 villages, the paper shows that self-reported malaria incidence is highly correlated with village elevation, slope, and the interaction between elevation and slope. That is because malaria is sensitive to elevation differences in flatlands, where the habitat is suitable for mosquito breeding, and is less sensitive to elevation in steeper lands. Using topography as a predictor of the disease environment, I find that education levels are worse in areas with more adverse disease environments. I find weak or no conclusive evidence that other village outcomes including wealth and food insecurity are related to malaria risk. JEL Classification: O15, I15, I25