Wits/PPS Health Economics Africa Essay Competition 2026

Eligibility Criteria

Undergraduate Eligibility

• This competition is open to undergraduate students from any discipline currently enrolled in any university on the African continent in a Bachelors or Honours degree (entrants will be required to upload a certified proof of registration/enrolment in 2025 as part of the submission process).
• Essays have to focus on the following topics:
  • The Cost of Distance: When Geography Shapes Health
  • Climate on the Clinic Doorstep
  • Antibiotics and the Dilemmas of Healthcare Decisions
  • What – and Who – Keeps the Health System Running
  • Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Healthcare
  • The Political Economy of Health Financing

Postgraduate Eligibility

• This competition is open to postgraduate students from any discipline currently enrolled in a Master’s or Doctoral/PhD degree at any university on the African continent (entrants will be required to upload a certified proof of registration/enrolment in 2025 as part of the submission process).
• Papers must address a question or issue grounded in health economics, incorporating the application of economic principles and methods to health and healthcare. Papers may draw on other disciplines, but the central contribution should advance the understanding of economic aspects of health systems, health policy, and/or health behavior.

Application Process