Dr. Syeda Warda Riaz is an Assistant Professor in the Chaudhry Nazar Muhammad (CNM) Department of Economics at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS). She holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics from the University of California, Davis, where her dissertation focused on social protection and health. Her research sits at the intersection of health economics, development economics, and gender — with a particular focus on social protection, cash transfers, and women's wellbeing in Pakistan and South Asia. Her work has been published in the Journal of Human Resources, Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, and the Journal of Development Effectiveness, and she has ongoing projects on perinatal depression, child health, HPV vaccination barriers, and intra-household bargaining. She is an IGC Research Affiliate and a Founding Board Member of the International Development Economics Association, and has received research funding from UNICEF, the World Bank, and IGC.
Chapple, A., Reynolds, E., Mude, A., Riaz, S. W., & Engle-Stone, R. (2024). Is investing in food small and medium enterprises a viable path to improved nutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa? A multidisciplinary perspective. Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, 46(2), 475-498. doi:10.1002/aepp.13427
Majid, H., &Riaz, S. W. (2022). Unconditional cash transfers and womens labor supply in Pakistan. Journal of Development Effectiveness, 14(3), 246-264. doi:10.1080/19439342.2022.2029539
Alloush, M., & Riaz, S. W. (forthcoming). The health effects of in utero exposure to cash transfers. Journal of Human Resources. doi:10.3368/jhr.0324-13487R2
Riaz, S. W., Javaid, M., & Waqar, M. (2026). A situational analysis of female entrepreneurs: Challenges and way-forward. In Gender at work in Pakistan. Routledge
Doctor brides or hidden returns? with Farhan Majid. Data Analysis.
Timing matters: Intra-household bargaining under cash stress with Sheharyar Banuri & Rashid Memon. Inthe Field.
Siblings in the Storm: Flood Shocks and Intra-Household Educational Inequality with Maheen Javaid & RidaHameed. DataAnalysis.
Barriers to HPV Vaccination Uptake in Pakistan with Tareena Musaddiq &AnamSiddiqKuraishi. Manuscript in Preparation.
Cash transfers and women empowerment: Evidence from Pakistan with Hadia Majid. Manuscript in Preparation.
Modest financial incentives are effective in improving child health: Evidence from Pakistan with Michael Carter & Rashid Memon. Manuscript in Preparation.
Social protection and perinatal depression: Evidence from South Africa with Mo Alloush & Jeffrey Bloem. Revise &Resubmit at Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization
2024: UC Davis Development Seminar; 6th Applied Development Economics Conference, Lahore School of Economics; Evidence Matters: Research & Evaluation for Informed Decision-Making, UNICEF Pakistan
2025: 7th Applied Development Economics Conference, Lahore School of Economics
2026: IAFFE 34th Annual Conference, Universidad ICESI, Cali, Colombia (remote)
Association of Asian Studies (AAS-in-Asia) 2026 Conference, LUMS
PI: Bargaining and Cash Stress Faculty Initiative Fund, LUMS ? with Sheharyar Banuri & Rashid Memon
co-PI: When the Lecturer is Remote: Evaluating Teaching Aide Training in Hybrid Classrooms Faculty Initiative Fund, LUMS ? with Tareena Musaddiq (2026-27)
co-PI: Myth-Conceptions: Gender, Authority and Debunking of Reproductive Health Misinformation CNM Economics, LUMS ?with Tareena Musaddiq (2026)
co-PI: Diagnostic Study on Decent Work in Rural Economy in Pakistan International Labour Organization with Hadia Majid (2017)
PI: Maternal and Child Health Conditional Cash Transfer Program- Sindh, Pakistan IGCPakistan, Small Projects ? with Michael Carter (2022-23)
co-PI: Measuring the Impact of Mobile Wallets on Low-Income Womens Economic Empowerment in Pakistan. LUMS Faculty Initiative Fund ? with Hadia Majid, Rashid Memon & Mariam Mustafa (2022-23)
PI: Maternal and Child Health Conditional Cash Transfer Program- Sindh, Pakistan UNICEF Pakistan? with Rashid Memon (2023-24)
co-PI: Transforming Womens Lives: An Evaluation of BISP Cash Transfer on the Socio-Economic Well-being of Women Punjab Commission on the Status of Women,Pakistan with Hadia Majid (2018)