Christian Lippitsch

Christian is a Senior Research and Policy Officer at the Economic Policy Network (EPN) at the University of Oxford, a joint initiative of the Centre for the Study of African Economies (CSAE) and the Blavatnik School of Government. The EPN supports policymakers in developing countries in delivering on their development mandates.
In this role, Christian works on research projects that help policymakers in lower-income countries address both global and local challenges. Prior to joining CSAE, Christian served as the Senior Country Economist for the International Growth Centre (IGC) in Rwanda from 2022 to 2025. There, he led several demand-driven research initiatives to support the Government of Rwanda's evidence-based policymaking.
Christian’s work focuses on private sector productivity, value chain integration, and international trade—often at the intersection with climate change-related issues. During his time in Rwanda, he also supported the trade work of the World Bank and the World Trade Organization (WTO) as a short-term consultant.
Christian previously gained experience as an intern and visiting researcher at economic research institutes in Vietnam and Germany. He holds a BSc in Economics from the University of Cologne and an MSc and PhD in Economics from the University of Edinburgh. His doctoral research explored agricultural land markets, investment, and climate change in Africa from a macro-development perspective