Christopher Choong Weng Wai

Christopher Choong Weng Wai is Deputy Director of Research at the Khazanah Research Institute (KRI). He is a Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity at the International Inequalities Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science. In recognition of his academic and professional achievements, he is appointed as Adjunct Associate Professor with the Jeffrey Sachs Center on Sustainable Development, Sunway University.  

In KRI, Christopher looks at gender, care, and social reproduction as well as broader issues of poverty, inequality, and exclusion. Prior to joining KRI, he served as the Economist/Programme Manager for the United Nations Development Programme Country Office of Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei Darussalam.

Christopher completed his PhD at the University of Warwick, where he was a recipient of the Chancellor’s International Scholarship. His thesis is titled "The Everyday Political Economy of Raced Capitalism in Malaysia: Reinscribing Malay Women's Lives, Labour, and Households". His research interests include the political economy of Malaysia/Southeast Asia, feminist international political economy, social reproduction theories, and racial capitalism.  

Christopher holds an MSc in Inequalities and Social Science from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), University of London, where he was awarded the Atkinson Prize; an MSc in Development Economics from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; and a BSc in Economics from the University of Malaya.