Economic Research Southern Africa (ERSA) is pleased to announce a two-day conference bringing together academics, policymakers, and subject-matter experts to explore health economics and policy in emerging markets.
Background and motivation
Emerging markets face common challenges: constrained fiscal space, dual public-private health systems, uneven access to care, and rising burdens of both communicable and non-communicable diseases. At the same time, countries are pursuing ambitious reforms, including universal health coverage (UHC) and new health financing models.
South Africa exemplifies many of these challenges, alongside deep socio-economic inequalities and ongoing policy reform efforts such as the National Health Insurance (NHI). There is therefore strong value in drawing lessons from both local and international evidence.
Economic Research Southern Africa (ERSA) invites submissions for a two-day conference aimed at advancing rigorous, policy-relevant research on the economics of health and healthcare in emerging markets, with a particular emphasis on generating insights that can inform South African health policy.
Focus Areas
The conference aims to:
- Advance the evidence base on health economics in emerging markets
- Generate insights that can inform South African health policy and reform
- Foster collaboration between economists, public health researchers, and policymakers
- Promote rigorous empirical and interdisciplinary research
Submissions should align with one or more of the following themes:
- Health System Performance and Financing
- Health Service Design, Costing, and Implementation
- Health Technology Assessment
- Equity, Access, and Social Determinants
- Behavioural and Informational Economics in Health
- Global and Comparative Health Economics
While these themes are prioritised, submissions addressing related topics are also encouraged.
Keynote Speaker
We are pleased to announce that Kenneth Leonard from the University of Maryland will deliver the keynote address.
Professor Leonard is an applied development economist with extensive experience in Africa, focusing on human capital and the delivery of health services in developing and rural contexts. His research examines how institutions shape healthcare provision, particularly in environments characterised by asymmetric information and credence goods such as medical and educational services.
His work also explores peer effects, social networks, and the role of non-governmental organisations in service delivery. Drawing on fieldwork across multiple African countries – including Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Uganda, and Tanzania – his research is grounded in original data collection, including surveys and field experiments.
In addition, his work on gender leverages the diversity of African cultural contexts to better understand how norms influence behaviour and outcomes.
Call for Papers
Submissions should be original research papers or advanced working papers. There are no restrictions on data sources or empirical methods; however, papers using novel data, including household-level or survey data, and those providing credible causal evidence will be prioritised. All submissions must be explicitly relevant to economics and health policy in emerging markets.
We also invite PhD students from South African universities to showcase their research through a poster session at the conference. Posters will be selected from individual paper submissions via the conference submission link.
Important dates
- Submission deadline: 1 October 2026
- Notification of acceptance: 2 November 2026
- Conference dates: 28-29 January 2027
Funding
Travel and accommodation expenses will be covered for all participants based in South Africa. Participants from outside South Africa are also encouraged to apply. For international participants, accommodation and domestic travel will be covered, and international airfare will be covered up to a maximum of R15,000.
If applicants are able to contribute to fund their flights and accommodation from an available research grant, this will allow ERSA to support a larger number of participants. Please indicate in your application whether you will require funding from ERSA or will be able to cover some or all of your travel costs.
Organising Committee
- Carmen Christian, University of Western Cape, ERSA fellow
- Steve Koch, University of Pretoria, ERSA Academic Director
- Eleni Yitbarek, University of Pretoria, ERSA fellow
- Fouché Venter, ERSA Executive Director
