The 11th Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS) International Conference will be held on Friday 3 March 2017 in Singapore.
Organised by ISAS, National University of Singapore (NUS), the overarching theme of the conference is ‘Contemporary South Asia: Regional Dynamics and Changing Global Politics,’ according to a press statement by ISAS.
The Guest of Honour is Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Singapore.
The conference will bring together renowned experts from around the world to share their views on this region which, despite being one of the least integrated regions in the world, is home to a number of bilateral disputes and deep-seated conflicts.
Though focusing on the four major economies of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, the conference will also touch on issues common to the smaller states and the region as a whole.
The panel discussions seek to address the concerns with multiple forces in the world today, of globalisation, regionalisation, as well as nationalism and protectionism. Panellists will also provide an analysis of national policies and strategies of South Asian countries, discuss the potential dividends of enhanced regional trade and linkages to the surrounding regions. In addition, they will examine implications of recent global events and developments in South Asia.
The concluding panel will draw on the five inter-related research foci of ISAS: diplomacy, democracy, defence, development and the diaspora. These will be used to assess the prospects for peace, conflict and growth in South Asia, and the role that the region can play in a global context.
Each panel opens with an eminent principle speaker. They include Ambassador George E. Moose, Former United States (US) Representative to the European Union Office of the United Nations (UN) and now Vice Chairman of the US Institute of Peace; Md. Shahidul Haque, Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh; Dr. David M. Malone, Under-Secretary-General of the UN and Rector of the UN University in Tokyo; as well as Ambassador Umej Singh Bhatia, Former Ambassador of Singapore to the United Arab Emirates.