Abstract

The recent tariff wars are upturning global trade; will these lead to another Global Food Crisis impacting Southeast Asia similar to the 07-08 Global Food Crisis? As ASEAN member states are already working on food security policies, is the region resilient? What are the near- and longer-term impacts on food production and trade? Does it risk undermining movements towards climate-resilient agri-food systems? What more can be done by governments, the private sector, the civil sector and people to reduce negative impacts?  This timely webinar will discuss these urgent concerns, in hopes that ASEAN member states are well prepared to secure the region’s food security.

About the Speakers

Dr Mercedita Sombilla is the Director of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). She previously served as the Undersecretary for Policy, Planning, and Regulations at the Department of Agriculture (DA), Philippines and Undersecretary of the Regional Development Group at the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Philippines. She was also previously at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Washington D.C., and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). She currently also is the Secretary General of the Association of Southeast Asian Agricultural Economists. (Note: Compiled by organisers from SEARCA website, https://www.searca.org/officials/director).

Mr Abdullah Mammun, MsC is a Senior Research Analyst in the Markets, Trade and Institutions of the International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington D.C. He will speak on “Tariff war: lessons from the past retaliation, and implications of current measures for food security in Southeast Asia.” His research interests include economic modeling, trade in agriculture, farm support policies, and household welfare models of the impacts of shocks such as weather, trade policy changes, and R&D investment. He has published several journal articles on agricultural productivity, reforming and repurposing subsidies for improved environmental outcomes and GHG emissions, and co-authored blog posts on food security following Russia-Ukraine crisis, export restrictions, trade disruptions. Abdullah holds an MS in Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, United States.

Professor César A. Hidalgo is a Chilean-Spanish-American scholar known for his contributions to economic complexity and for his applied work on data visualization and artificial intelligence. Professor Hidalgo will give a recorded presentation given the time difference, focusing on the Tariff Simulator tool developed at the OEC. He is a tenured professor at the Toulouse School of Economics’ (TSE) Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences and the head of the Center for Collective Learning a multidisciplinary research laboratory with offices at Institute for Advanced Study (IAST) at TSE and the Corvinus Institute of Advanced Studies (CIAS) at Corvinus University of Budapest. He is also an Honorary Professor at the Alliance Manchester Business School of the University of Manchester.

Professor Paul S Teng is an Adjunct Senior Fellow with the Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies (NTS Centre) at RSIS, NTU and concurrently a Visiting Senior Fellow in the “Climate Change in Southeast Asia Programme” at ISEAS. He will be sharing his perspectives on the food security impacts of the tariff wars on Southeast Asia. His research interests include food security and sustainable development, trends and policy shifts of food producing countries in the region, and enablers of resilient and sustainable food systems and supply chains, among others. He previously held leadership positions at the Worldfish Centre, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and Monsanto Company.

About the Chairpersons

Ms Elyssa Ludher is a food security expert and urban planner. She is currently a Visiting Fellow at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. She has contributed to food policy research at the World Bank, Centre for Liveable Cities Singapore, and the Singapore Food Agency. Ms Ludher’s publications have included “RICH Food, Smart City”, “Food and the City: Overcoming Challenges for Food Security”, and “Preparing for a Climate Resilient Singapore”. She has a double Master’s in Urban and Regional Planning and Bioresource Engineering

Dr Jose Ma Luis Montesclaros is a Research Fellow and Food Security Lead at the NTS Centre, RSIS, where he teaches on the Political Economy of Development. He conducts policy analysis with dynamic models of food security and climate change, and investigates how institutions promote induced innovation in agriculture. As an ASEAN Scholar, he holds a Master’s in Public Policy with the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP), National University of Singapore, and represented the school as “Leader of Tomorrow” at the 44th Saint Gallen Wings of Excellence Awards. He received his BS Economics degree from the University of the Philippines (Diliman).