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Torsten Figueiredo Walter

  • Assistant Professor of Economics
  • New York University Abu Dhabi

Roles

Lead academics

Research affiliates

Researchers

Email

[email protected]

Torsten Figueiredo Walter is an Assistant Professor of Economics at New York University Abu Dhabi. He holds a BSc from the University of Bonn and a PhD from the London School of Economics. His primary field of expertise is development economics, with research focusing on two main thematic areas: (i) the allocation of public services in low- and middle-income countries, and (ii) data production and measurement. His work is geographically focused on Sub-Saharan Africa, with ongoing and past projects in Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia. He also serves as Lead Academic for the International Growth Centre’s Zambia programme.

Projects

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Zambia village electrification survey

Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Niclas Moneke 30 Dec 2025
Project
Zambia

Measuring local economic development in Zambia

Niclas Moneke, Torsten Figueiredo Walter 31 Mar 2024
Project
Woman preparing food (nshima and chicken) in Ng'andu Village (Zambia)

Endogenous sample selection in Zambian household surveys

Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Niclas Moneke 31 Mar 2024
Project
Data entry at railway clinic in kafue district

Mapping the data landscape within the government of Zambia

Shahrukh Wani, Torsten Figueiredo Walter 31 Dec 2023
Project
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Complementarities in public infrastructure provision: Evidence from school electrification in Zambia

Niclas Moneke, Torsten Figueiredo Walter 31 Aug 2025
Project
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The heterogenous effects of rural electrification: Evidence from Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Niclas Moneke 31 Jul 2023
Project
Kenyan vegetable farmer harvesting spinach with her wheelbarrow. Photo credit: boezie / E+ via Getty Images.

Economic impacts of COVID-19 on smallholder farmers and the agricultural value chain in Kenya

Tomoko Harigaya, Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Hannah Timmis, Siyao Jessica Zhu, Kaitlyn Turner 31 Jul 2020
Project
People walking on a road in Makkala nguzu Market, Choma, Zambia

Complementarities in the provision of public services: Evidence from Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter 31 Mar 2021
Project

Electrification of schools in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Niclas Moneke 31 Aug 2019
Project
A teacher writing on a blackboard in Mozambique. Photo by: GPE / Arnaldo Langa / CC BY-NC-ND.

Teacher gender and the gender gap in education

Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Celine Zipfel 30 Apr 2019
Project
Hospital in Kalomo town, southern province, Zambia. Photo credit: Amanit Phalloides via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

The spatial distribution of health services in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter 30 Jun 2018
Project
Primary school classroom in Ethiopia. Photo credit: Nardos Mengesha / FHI 360, USAID in Africa, United States Government Work.

(Mis)allocation of teachers and state capacity

Torsten Figueiredo Walter 31 Dec 2018
Project

Productivity in the civil service: Understanding the impact of payroll reform on worker performance

Nava Ashraf, Oriana Bandiera, Torsten Figueiredo Walter 30 Jun 2017
Project
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Pilot study on productivity in the civil service: Understanding the impact of compensation as a driver of worker performance

Oriana Bandiera, Nava Ashraf, Torsten Figueiredo Walter 31 May 2016
Project

All contributions

Graphical image, with electrification, a map of zambia layered and with transparency

When does electrification work in rural Zambia?

Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Niclas Moneke, Rory Hardie
Blog
Cover page for policy brief

Climate shocks and charcoal production in Zambia

Protensia Hadunka, Rory Hardie, Anna Waller, Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Policy brief
thumbnail image of Figueiredo Walter and Moneke Policy Brief December 2024

When does electrification work? Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa

Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Niclas Moneke
Policy brief
A woman types at her laptop, working in an office.

Unlocking the potential of Zambia's administrative data

Rory Hardie, Shahrukh Wani, Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Benjamin Shawa
Synthesis paper

Complementarities in the provision of public services: Evidence from Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Policy brief
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Agro-dealer and farmer COVID-19 survey: April – June 2020

Tomoko Harigaya, Kaitlyn Turner, Hannah Timmis, Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Siyao Jessica Zhu
Policy brief

Teacher gender and the gender gap in education: The case of Mozambique primary schools

Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Celine Zipfel
Policy brief
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Reducing school staffing imbalances and wasteful government spending in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Policy brief
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State management of education and educational performance in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Policy brief
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State management of education systems and educational performance: Evidence from a management survey at district education offices in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Project report
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The allocation of teachers across public primary schools in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Project report
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The spatial distribution of health services in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Project report
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Onde estão os professores? Distribuição dos professores em escolas públicas em Moçambique

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Policy brief
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Where are the teachers? The distribution of teachers across public primary schools in Mozambique

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Policy brief
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Missing links and mismatches: Data challenges with policy implications

Nava Ashraf, Oriana Bandiera, Torsten Figueiredo Walter, Kelsey Jack
Project report
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Presentation: The allocation of teachers across public schools in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Publication
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Presentation: The distribution of health services in Zambia

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Publication
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Where are the teachers? Staffing inequities across Zambian public schools

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Policy brief
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Integrating administrative databases to improve resource allocation in the Zambian health sector: An application to the spatial distribution of health workers

Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Policy brief
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Evaluating Zambia's 2013 salary reform

Oriana Bandiera, Nava Ashraf, Torsten Figueiredo Walter
Project report