It was another proud accomplishment for UTAR Vice President for Student Development and Alumni Relations Prof Dr Choong Chee Keong as he was selected as one of the Top Research Scientists Malaysia (TRSM) for Social Sciences and Humanities Discipline by the Academy of Sciences Malaysia.

He received the TRSM certificate from the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Dato' Sri Dr Adham Baba at the certificate presentation ceremony of 2022 TRSM, held in Kuala Lumpur on 20 September 2022, along with 28 others scientists.

Prof Choong is actively involved in the areas of applied economics, covering the areas of private capital flows, financial and banking institutions and development, tourism development and energy policy. He has more than 230 papers accepted/published in indexed journals, books, book chapters, conference/seminar proceedings and magazines. Prof Choong, who is also a certified trainer endorsed by the Human Resource Development Fund (Ministry of Human Resources), has been conducting a series of seminars for public-listed companies (YTL Corporation, RHB Bank, AmBank, Maybank Berhad and Deutsche Bank Malaysia, to name a few). He is also currently appointed as the deputy chairman of the Socio-Economic Research Committee, The Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) (2021-2024). Prior to this, he was appointed as the Professorial Chair for the Tan Sri Dato’ Sri Dr. Teh Hong Piow Chair in Banking and Finance sponsored by Public Bank Berhad (2012-2017).

Prof Choong enthused, “I am deeply thankful to my research collaborators Prof Zulkornain Yusop, Prof T.K. Jayaraman, Dr Lau Lin Sea and Seow Ai Na for creating the way for this great recognition.”

The Top Research Scientists Malaysia (TRSM) is an initiative by the ASM; it focuses on fostering a culture of excellence in Science, Technology, Innovation and Economy (STIE). The initiative also aims to identify and recognise local leading research scientists in Malaysia. The output of this initiative is to establish and showcase the profile of Top Research Scientists Malaysia that would act as a central point of reference on the leading Malaysian research scientists and their research backgrounds. The convention of the best minds in the country would create a hub for knowledge dissemination that can spur the growth of STIE in Malaysia.