Pedro Naso
Senior Fellow
Pedro Naso - (University of Cape Town)
Pedro Naso is a Senior Fellow in the School of Economics at the University of Cape Town. He earned his PhD in Economics from the Geneva Graduate Institute, an MRes and an MSc from University College London, and a BEng from the University of São Paulo. An applied microeconomist working primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa, Naso uses field experiments and other causal inference methods to study questions in development and environmental economics. He has conducted fieldwork in South Africa, Kenya, Burundi, China, and elsewhere, examining technology adoption, labour markets, knowledge diffusion, agricultural decision-making, and natural resource management. His research is motivated by policy questions and includes impact evaluations conducted in partnership with governments and NGOs. He is also a guest lecturer at the University of Burundi, has served as a guest lecturer at the University of Rwanda, and is an affiliated researcher at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.
Selected Publications:
Cefala, L., Irakoze, F., Naso, P., Swanson, N. (2026). When Outsiders Become Insiders: Beliefs and the Persistence of
Exclusionary Norms, AEA Papers and Proceedings, Vol. 116, pp. 162-166.
Hans, I., Naso, P. (2025). When Boys Become Men: Economic Benefits of Male Adulthood in Female-Headed
Households in Burundi, Review of Economics of the Household, pp. 1-48.
Naso, P. (2024) Delegation of Environmental Regulation and Perceived Corruption in South Africa, Resource and
Energy Economics, Volume 79-80, 101462.
Naso, P., Lanz, B., Swanson, T. (2020) The Return of Malthus? Resource Constraints in an Era of Declining
Population Growth, European Economic Review, Volume 128, 103499.
Naso, P., Bulte, E., Swanson, T. (2020) Legal Pluralism in Post-conflict Sierra Leone, European Journal of Political
Economy, Elsevier, vol. 61.
Naso, P., Yi, H., Swanson, T. (2020) The Impact of Environmental Regulation on Chinese Spatial Development,
Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(1), pages 161-194, January.
Exclusionary Norms, AEA Papers and Proceedings, Vol. 116, pp. 162-166.
Hans, I., Naso, P. (2025). When Boys Become Men: Economic Benefits of Male Adulthood in Female-Headed
Households in Burundi, Review of Economics of the Household, pp. 1-48.
Naso, P. (2024) Delegation of Environmental Regulation and Perceived Corruption in South Africa, Resource and
Energy Economics, Volume 79-80, 101462.
Naso, P., Lanz, B., Swanson, T. (2020) The Return of Malthus? Resource Constraints in an Era of Declining
Population Growth, European Economic Review, Volume 128, 103499.
Naso, P., Bulte, E., Swanson, T. (2020) Legal Pluralism in Post-conflict Sierra Leone, European Journal of Political
Economy, Elsevier, vol. 61.
Naso, P., Yi, H., Swanson, T. (2020) The Impact of Environmental Regulation on Chinese Spatial Development,
Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(1), pages 161-194, January.