ICAFS 2014 - International Conference on Asian Food Security 2014

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International Conference on Asian Food Security (ICAFS) 2014 
Towards Asia 2025: Policy and Technology Imperatives

21–22 August 2014 
Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel 
Singapore

Asia faces serious challenges to its food security and ICAFS 2014 will be a key forum to meet and discuss its issues and drivers. The conference will focus on Asia’s response towards the thinking horizon of 2025.

ICAFS 2014 speakers comprise thought leaders, policymakers, as well as business and development experts such as:

• Mr Bindu Lohani, Vice President, Asian Development Bank (ADB)

• Dr Fan Shenggen, Director General, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

• Dr Robert Zeigler, Director-General, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)

• Dr Jomo K. Sundaram, Assistant Director General for Economic and Social Development, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)

• Dr Bayu Krishnamurthi, Vice Minister for Trade, Indonesia; and Professor, Agricultural Economics, Bogor Agricultural University

• Mr Davor Pisk, Chief Operating Officer, Syngenta

• Dr Jikun Huang, Founder and Director, Chinese Centre for Agricultural Policy for China

• Dr S. Mahendra Dev, Director, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research

• And many more.

The conference is also set to offer valuable insights and analyses by representatives of the Indonesian Food Security Agency, food experts from India and China, as well as food trade and supply chain specialists.

Organised by the RSIS Centre for NTS Studies, ICAFS 2014 is targeted at those with leadership responsibilities who want to understand and address the challenges affecting the Asian agri-food landscape. It will be especially useful for government leaders, agri-food industry experts, civil societies and NGOs, members of academia, and representatives of investment entities.

For an updated list of speakers and details of ICAFS 2014 programme, please click here.

Download the official event flyer here.

Credit: Belinda Chng

 

Topics of Discussion

The programme sessions will cover the following:

Session 1: Asia 2025 – Trends and Challenges to Food and Nutrition Security
This session focuses on the trends and challenges that affect Asian food security. These include changes in demography and consumption patterns, performance decline of agriculture, degradation of natural resource base for food production and climate change. This session is aimed at setting the context on possible policy and other interventions for both food and nutrition needs.

Session 2: Food Supply and Demand – Improving Productivity Growth and Supply Chains
Session 2 is the ‘bread and butter’ session, focusing on food supply and demand issues, declining productivity/yield growth, and rapid urbanisation. This session aims to provide an assessment of technological and policy innovations required as well as current efforts to modernise supply chains to cope with changes in food demand patterns in Asia.

Session 3: Market Integration, Trade and Economic Access to Food
This session examines the role of market integration and trade in improving physical and economic access to food. It will also discuss the ASEAN Economic Community 2015, other regional trade agreements, and their effect on keeping prices stable and affordable.

Session 4: Financing and Investing in Agricultural Innovation and Technology
Session 4 looks at the importance of innovation and technology in increasing agricultural productivity and food processing. It will also highlight the importance of infrastructure, R&D, technology development and transfer, and the necessary policy environment for investments to bear fruit. 

Session 5: Charting an Integrative Approach for Asia towards Asia 2025
Session 5 will aggregate all of the sessions and chart the direction in moving towards 2025 and beyond. Speakers representing national governments, food producers and civil society will articulate the various perspectives and propose directions in which the region must move in order to achieve food security by 2025.

Concluding Session: Way Forward – Regional Cooperation for Food Security
The concluding session will chart next steps for the region. The keynote speaker, Mr Bindu Lohani, Vice President for Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development, Asian Development Bank, will also provide a regional bank’s perspective on the need for integrated approaches in tackling food security.

All sessions will be in plenary mode.

Networking sessions include a cocktail reception and gala dinner on 21 August.

ICAFS 2014 is supported by:

• Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)

• Ministry of National Development (MND), Singapore

• National Security Coordination Secretariat (NSCS), Singapore

ICAFS 2014 knowledge partners and co-sponsors are:

• International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

• International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)

• International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA)

• Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA)

• Business Council for Sustainable Development (BCSD) Singapore

• Food Industry Asia (FIA)

• CropLife Asia

• Syngenta

Register and pay here.

More information on ICAFS 2014

Asia faces serious challenges to its food security. Changing demographics and consumption patterns, productivity decline in agriculture, degradation of natural resource base, food price volatility, rising input costs, as well as transformation of supply chains and the “supermarket phenomenon”, are but a few of these. Add to this the various anticipated short- to medium-term trends, and it becomes clear that focused efforts towards mitigating the challenges are urgently needed.

The complexity of food security, dynamism of supply chains and the space offered by Asia’s institutional changes are creating both challenges and opportunities for the region. In light of prevailing and foreseeable trends that have direct consequences for the region’s food security, the second International Conference on Asian Food Security (ICAFS) organised by the RSIS Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies will focus strongly on Asia’s response towards the thinking horizon of 2025.

Specifically, ICAFS 2014 seeks to:

• Suggest recommendations that contribute towards enhancing food security at the national and regional levels, and identify clear policy directions and interventions to guide efforts towards food security.

• Provide concrete and actionable policy recommendations attuned to the new realities of food security challenges as Asia approaches 2025.

• Identify ways in which Asia could position itself to maximise the full benefits of its connectivity and build on its comparative advantage within and vis-à-vis other regions.

ICAFS 2014 will convene eminent experts from the public and private sectors, as well as international and regional non-government organisations. It will also serve as a forum for updates, assessments, recommendations, and perspectives emanating from the distinctive spheres of science/technology, business, policy and social development to gain a holistic understanding of issues surrounding Asia’s food security.

Posted on: 21/8/2014 9:00:00 AM  |  Topic: Food Security