Having more than 35 of its former students accepted into doctoral programs in North America and Europe, the African School of Economics(ASE) alumni continue to prove their excellence. Cossi Xavier Agbeto, ASE master’s graduate and research assistant, has been admitted into a doctoral program at the Catholic University of Louvain,Belgium, on a fully funded ARES-CCD scholarship where he will be specializing in health economics. Cossi chose Louvain because the university offers extensive opportunities for health economics research, aligning with his focus on social impact oriented research in the fields of health, economics, and development.

Cossi’s tertiary education began at the University of Abomey-Calavi, where he completed both his bachelor’s and master’s degree in Economics with a focus on project analysis. He went on to work as the Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Assistant (MEAL) at the Local Economic Development Center. Continuing his call to service, he later became the Program Manager Assistant (PMA)for ‘Valeur Albinos’, a non-profit organization assisting in the improvement of health and social integration of children living with albinism in Benin.

While at ASE, Cossi immersed himself in the numerous research opportunities. He says that

“ASE offers a good environment to its students through the quality of its training
and by allowing them to work in its various research institutes. These
advantages make them very competitive in both academic and professional
settings.”

After graduating with his second master’s degree, Cossi began working as a research assistant for the Institute for Empirical Research in Political Economy (IERPE) at ASE, which he describes as a pivotal experience. Through his role, he worked on multiple stages of the research process: proposal writing, survey designing, coordinating fieldwork, and managing data. His dynamic projects span various sectors, including projects titles like, “The Impact of COVID-19 on the Economy ’, “Social Cohesion and Governance in Benin”, “Burkina Faso and South Africa”, “The Promotion of Mathematics Among Girls in Benin”, and “A Quasi Experiment Study on Economic Opportunities for Youth and Violence in Benin.”

Most recently, Cossi worked at the Human Reproduction and Demography Research Center, proving once again his insatiable interest in healthcare research. His long term vision echoes his track record. Cossi intends to become an academic who focuses on health economics research. His mission: to improve the healthcare systems on the African continent.