Mr. Martin Khor joined as Executive Director of the South Centre on 1 March 2009. Prior to this, he was the Director of the Third World Network, a leading developing-country civil society organization involved in research and publications in trade, environment and development issues. He was also the Editor of the South-North Development Monitor (SUNS).  He is a member of the United Nations Committee on Development Policy.   

Previously, he served as a member of the of the Board of the South Centre in 1996-2002, the  Helsinki Group on Globalisation and Democracy, the International Task Force on Climate Change (2003-2005), the Expert Group on Democracy and Development, Commonwealth Secretariat (2002-2003), the United Nations Secretary-General's Task Force on Environment and Human    Settlements in the UN System (1998), and the Working Group of Experts on the Right to Development, the UN Commission on Human Rights (Vice-Chairman - 1996, member - 1997).

He was educated in Economics in Cambridge University (U.K.) and the Universiti Sains Malaysia, and has authored many books and papers on trade, sustainable development, intellectual property rights, and development.  Formerly he had also worked as Research Director of the Consumers’ Association of Penang and as a lecturer in the Universiti Sains Malaysia.