Right-sizing Incentives
This paper presents results from a field experiment in Nigeria in which expectant mothers were offered cash payments conditioned on using formal medical care.
Edward Okeke is an adjunct senior economist at RAND and a professor of policy analysis at the RAND School of Public Policy. He is an applied microeconomist and a physician. His research focuses on a singular question: how to improve the health of people in developing countries. His work specifically examines the role of medical care, and the constraints surrounding medical care delivery. He conducts research primarily in sub-Saharan Africa. Okeke’s work has received financial support from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the National Cancer Institute, the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), and the Russell Sage Foundation, amongst others. His work has won multiple awards, including, most recently, the 2024 Kenneth J. Arrow Award for the Best Paper in Health Economics. Prior to joining RAND, Okeke was an assistant professor of health economics and policy at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. He holds an M.B.B.S. (M.D.) from Nnamdi Azikiwe University, an M.A. in applied economics, a Master's in public health, and a Ph.D. in health policy (economics) from the University of Michigan.
Education
Ph.D. in health policy (economics), University of Michigan; M.A. in applied economics, University of Michigan; M.P.H., University of Michigan; M.D., Nnamdi Azikiwe University
Selected Work
- Edward Okeke, "Making Bricks from Straw: Resources and Productivity in Health Care," American Economic Review, 2025 (forthcoming)
- Edward N. Okeke, "When a Doctor Falls From The Sky: The Impact of Easing Physician Supply Constraints on Mortality," American Economic Review, 113(3), 2023
- Okeke, Edward N., "Playing Defense? Health Care in the Era of Covid," Journal of Health Economics, 102665, 2022
- Okeke, Edward N., "Working Hard or Hardly Working: Health Worker Effort and Health Outcomes. ," Economic Development and Cultural Change, 70(1), 2021
- Okeke, Edward N., Zachary Wagner, and Isa Abubakar, "Maternal Cash Transfers led to Increases in Facility Deliveries and Improved Quality of Delivery Care in Nigeria," Health Affairs, 39(6), 2020
- Okeke, Edward N., and Isa Abubakar, "Healthcare at the Beginning of Life and Child Survival: Evidence from a Cash Transfer Experiment in Nigeria," Journal of Development Economics, 143(102426), 2020
- Chari, A.V., Peter Glick, Edward N. Okeke, and Sinduja Srinivasan, "Does Workfare Worsen Infant Health? Evidence from India’s Public Works Program," Journal of Development Economics , 138, 2019
- Godlonton, Susan and Edward N. Okeke, "Does a Ban on Informal Health Providers Save Lives? Evidence from Malawi," Journal of Development Economics, 118, 2016
Authored by Edward N. Okeke
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