HIV, or Human Immunodeficiency Virus Syndrome, is caused by the blood-borne HIV virus which is typically transmitted through sexual intercourse, shared blood or mother-to-child transmission. According to data from the World Bank, HIV rates were highest in South Africa and parts of East Africa in 2010, with Swaziland clocking in at the highest: 27.1% of the population was infected with HIV/AIDS.

A comparison of HIV rates to the indicators literacy rate, % population with internet access and average schooling years using Pearson's coefficient implies no correlation when looking at all the countries, suggesting that lack of access to education/information is not the reason for high HIV rates in parts of Africa. However, r values for the top 10 countries in the second and third scatter plots (0.62 and 0.63 respectively) tells us that higher literacy rates and schooling length correlate with higher HIV rates, an idea that makes little sense. Only through careful study and comparison with other similar indicators will it be made clear whether education indicators (particularly in the top ten countries) have a relationship with HIV rates.