Dato Sri Mustapa Mohamed started his career in the Economics Division of the Ministry of Finance, Malaysia in 1974. He left the civil service in 1987 when he was appointed as the Political Secretary to the Minister of Finance. That was the beginning of his long career as a politician until retired from active politics in June 2023. In politics, he had been a Senator, a Member of the Kelantan State Legislative Assembly, and a Member of Parliament for Jeli.
He has held a few positions in the Government of Malaysia, including Deputy Minister of Finance, Second Finance Minister, Minister of Entrepreneur Development, Minister of Agriculture, Minister of Higher Education for nine years, and Minister of International Trade and Industry. His last position in the Government of Malaysia was as the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of the Economy. Dato Sri Mustapa Mohamed did his undergraduate studies in Economics at the University of Melbourne and graduate studies in Development Economics at Boston University.