Dr. Akihito Watabe

Akihito Watabe provides technical assistance and investment processing for bank-wide sovereign operations in universal health coverage (UHC), including digital health, health AI, health insurance, and health financing. Within his private-sector operations portfolio, he provides technical guidance on non-sovereign operations across health care providers, diagnostics, digital health, and health insurance markets. He also fosters financing partnerships to strengthen the Asian Development Bank (ADB)’s strategic engagement and collaboration with key stakeholders and initiatives in global health. Before joining ADB, Akihito served as program manager of the International Health Partnership for UHC 2030. This multi-stakeholder partnership for UHC, co-hosted by the World Health Organization, World Bank, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, benefited greatly from his leadership. He spearheaded the partnership's advocacy, accountability, and knowledge management efforts, including the United Nations High-level Meeting on UHC, International UHC Day, and the State of UHC Commitment review. Akihito began his professional career as a medical doctor in Japan and as a public health physician in the Republic of Vanuatu. He also served as a health diplomat with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan, supporting former Prime Minister Abe’s flagship UHC initiative before starting his United Nations career. Akihito holds a medical license (Social Medicine) and a PhD (Public Health), a joint MSc (Health Policy, Planning, and Financing) from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the London School of Economics and Political Science, and an Executive Master's in Change from INSEAD.