Main Article Content
Abstract
To achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3, improved health outcomes is very vital. However, relatively low life expectancy and high mortality rates characterized most countries in subSaharan Africa (SSA) region. This paper investigated the effect of economic welfare on life expectancy in sub-Saharan Africa for a panel dataset of 44 selected countries spanning between 2000 and 2021. The study decomposed economic welfare into real gross domestic product, carbon dioxide emission and secondary school enrolment rate. Cross-sectional dependence and homogeneity slope tests were conducted, Generalized Method of Moments estimation method was employed in the analysis, further robustness checks were conducted with Average Mean Group. Reduction in carbon dioxide emission and secondary school enrolment rate level significantly increased life expectancy. Real Gross Domestic Product had positive but insignificant effect on life expectancy. The panel granger causality test revealed that real GDP, secondary school enrolment rate and carbon dioxide emission had bidirectional causal relationship with life expectancy. The study recommends that policy reforms towards reducing carbo dioxide emissions, increase in income levels, and adequate investment in education should be adopted for achieving long life expectancy in Sub-Saharan African countries.