Adam Wagstaff

He attended University of Wales, University College Swansea where he completed his BA Economics (1st class honors). He received the Adam Smith Award for Best Graduating Student. Adam completed his PhD Economics at the University of York

Adam started his academic career at the University of Sussex (1986-1998) where he became one of the youngest full Professors of Economics in the UK. In that period he co-led a series of EU funded projects on equity in the finance and delivery of health care that developed new tools for measurement and new comparative results for European countries.

He joined the World Bank in 1999 as a Lead Economist. From 2009 on he led and managed research on the economics of health, education, and social protection as Research Manager of Human Development in the Development Research Group at the World Bank. In addition to his formal job in research, he had a significant influence over the World Bank’s operations and loans as a member of the Health and Social Protection Boards and the Human Development council and as a generous peer reviewer for operational Bank documents.

He also served as the President of the International Health Economics Association in 2016-17 and was an associate editor of the Journal of Health Economics for 20 years.

He published extensively on a variety of aspects of the field, including Universal Health Coverage, health financing and health systems reform, as well as on health, equity and poverty. His most recent work was on health insurance, health financing, vulnerability and health shocks, and provider payment reform.

He had extensive experience in China and Vietnam and worked on other countries in East Asia, as well as countries in Africa, Latin America, South Asia, and Europe and Central Asia.

Adam was a top scholar in the field of health economics and had a powerful impact on health policy across the world.

He shaped the methods and tools for measuring inequality and inequity in health in profound ways, influencing a generation of researchers and government officials.

Beyond his unparalleled publication record, Adam worked tirelessly to turn ideas into practice by addressing real-world problems and communicating findings in an accessible way. Of his many achievements, the one he was most proud of in recent years was the inclusion of Universal Health Coverage as one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Adam also never gave up being a teacher. He was not only an exceptional mentor to colleagues at the World Bank, but also championed efforts to make data, tools and training available to academics, students and policymakers across the world.

He is ranked in the top 20 of most frequently cited of all health economists in the world, and in top 5% of all economists.

Adam is survived by his Wife: Pierella Paci - (Washington, DC), Daughter: Lilli Ruth Paci Wagstaff (London, UK), Son: Benedict John Paci Wagstaff (New York), Brother: Jeremy Wagstaff (Singapore), Niece: Charlotte Wagstaff (Singapore)

In Lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Adam’s name to one of charities listed below.