Dr. Ayesha Waqar

Dr. Ayesha Waqar serves as a Full Professor and permanent faculty member at the Lahore School of Economics, bringing over two decades of experience in economics, finance, and sustainable development. She is an established academic and policy advisor recognized for her leadership in advancing sustainable finance, green growth, and institutional reform across the public and financial sectors.

Dr. Waqar has served on the Boards of Governors of Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) and the Printing Corporation of Pakistan, where she has contributed to the Audit, Risk, and Human Resource Committees. Her board experience reflects her deep understanding of public-sector governance, ESG alignment, and financial accountability. She has provided strategic guidance on sustainable finance reforms and corporate governance transformation within state-owned enterprises.

A former Research Fellow at the University of Oxford, Dr. Waqar has worked extensively on financial systems, sustainability, and economic growth in South and East Asia. Her advisory engagements include work with the Department of Finance, Government of Ras Al Khaimah (UAE), the Government of Punjab, and major development organizations such as the World Bank, USAID, and UNDP. She has advised on projects related to fiscal risk management, carbon insetting, rural energy transitions, and climate-linked finance.

Dr. Waqar’s research is internationally recognized in leading journals such as Marine Policy, Resources Policy, Review of Accounting and Finance, and Management of Environmental Quality. Her recent publications explore sustainable finance, the blue economy, and the integration of ESG frameworks within financial institutions.

She has been the recipient of multiple international awards for research excellence, including Best Paper Awards at global conferences in Italy and Sri Lanka. Dr. Waqar also serves on the editorial boards of many esteemed international journals.

She holds a PhD in Economics with specialization in Financial Economics, as well as MPhil and MSc degrees in Economics and Finance. She has also completed executive training in Case Method Teaching at Harvard Business School, the Director’s Training Programme at LUMS, and certification in Inclusive Green Economy Indicators from the United Nations Institute for Training and Research.