Dr. Vincent Pagiwa is a health policy analyst serving as a public health research fellow at the University of Botswana's Okavango Research Institute. He holds a Ph.D. in Public Health specializing in health policy and financing from La Trobe University in Australia. He also has a Dual master’s degree in International Cooperation Policy and Public Health Management from Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University in Japan. He obtained a certificate in Health Economics from the World Bank Institute. His specific expertise is in, but not limited to, health policy evaluation and analysis, health systems financing, financial and benefit incidence analysis for communicable and non-communicable diseases, analyzing the effectiveness and efficiency of public health services delivery, climate change and health policy nexus, and health politics and governance. Dr. Pagiwa’s policy analysis experience includes a summative evaluation of the user fees policy for public health services in Botswana and a formative evaluation of the financing of climate change induced public health emergencies in Botswana (an assessment for policy reform). He acquired research grants from local and international funders; the most recent being The Horizon 2020 ENBEL project funded by the European Union, where he is focused on establishing the African regional mechanism for networking and collaboration on climate-health policy nexus (CHANCE Network).  

IVLP Impact Award Project: Advancing Climate Change and Health System Strengthening in Botswana   

The project will initiate a knowledge sharing and training platform through the CHeP 2024 symposium, designed to foster collaboration, partnerships, and key discussions among key climate-health stakeholders. They will share knowledge and best practices on effective strategies towards strengthening health system resilience and health security in Botswana. The meeting outputs will include developing a public health emergency preparedness and response framework through the Botswana Public Health Institute for the Ministry of Health to build their capacity on health system resilience strengthening and ensuring health security.  

Preparations are underway for the Climate Change and Health Policy (CHeP 2024) Symposium, which is scheduled for mid-December. The venue, meals, and program have all been procured and/or created, and the speakers are being finalized now.   

“With the IVLP project I desire to drive the establishment of the public health emergency preparedness and response plan for Botswana.” - Dr. Vincent Pagiwa 

IVLP Exchange Experience 

Vincent participated in the IVLP Project Cultivating U.S.-Africa Collaboration on Climate Resiliency and Health Security, organized by the U.S. Department of State and Meridian International Center, in partnership with Citizen Diplomacy Alliance, Global New Orleans, and Global Ties Arizona. 

Vincent’s exchange experience led to the development of his project: “The project gathered current and emerging leaders in climate change and health in Africa to collaborate and cultivate lasting relationships with their counterparts in the US. The African Climate-Health experts had the opportunity to engage with fellow subject matter experts and U.S government officials to foster a better understanding of the climate change and health nexus and the challenges; analyze U.S. policies, strategies and international engagement on public health challenges presented by or exacerbated by global climate change; and observe systems that support health early warning, while also increasing awareness and understanding of how these systems work at national, subnational, and community levels in the United States. As African experts, we also had the opportunity to showcase some of our expertise and milestones that were of interest and an opportunity for the U.S counterparts to learn from some of the experiences from developing countries. My participation in the IVLP Program created an opportunity for research collaboration, knowledge exchange and partnership in research and education within the climate change and health space essential to bolstering health systems resilience in Botswana. 

“My IVLP experience drove the idea to engage leaders on climate-health in Botswana to drive the agenda toward health security.” - Dr. Vincent Pagiwa 

U.S. Communities Visited

Phoenix, AZ; Tucson, AZ; Washington, DC; New Orleans, LA 

Country: Botswana 

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