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IN TRANSFORMATION:ARE THERE LESSONS FROM

IN TRANSFORMATION:ARE THERE LESSONS FROM

ORCHARD HOTEL SINGAPOREORCHARD GRAND BALLROOM442 ORCHARD ROAD, SG 238879

15 — 16 JAN 2020Conference Organised by:

2 | THE MIDDLE EAST IN TRANSFORMATION: ARE THERE LESSONS FROM EAST ASIA?

CONFERENCE STATEMENT

East Asia has been remarkably successful in transforming its economies. Starting with Japan in the Meiji era, to its recovery from World War II, and continuing with the emergence of the “Asian Tigers” — Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong — in the 1980s to China and Asean in the 1990s, the East Asian development model has spawned stunning growth. How have East Asian countries adapted to changing conditions to deliver such growth?

As countries in the Middle East undertake economic transformation, does East Asia hold lessons for them? Can they replicate the human capital development, state-sponsored capitalism and other pillars of the East Asian model? Should they? How will transformation affect politics and society?

Can geopolitical developments also impact the transformation of a country? How have countries in East Asia managed these external factors?

In this conference, we have gathered a stellar line-up of international experts, current and former ministers, and businessmen who will share their opinions on this issue from social, economic and educational fronts.

NUS MEI | 3 2 | THE MIDDLE EAST IN TRANSFORMATION: ARE THERE LESSONS FROM EAST ASIA?

8.30am Registration

ARRIVAL OF GUEST OF HONOURMr Tharman ShanmugaratnamSenior Minister and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies, Singapore

WELCOME REMARKS Mr Bilahari KausikanChairman, Middle East Institute, National University of Singapore (NUS)

OPENING REMARKSMr Tharman ShanmugaratnamSenior Minister and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies, Singapore

Coffee Break and Photo Session

FIRST KEYNOTE SPEECH HE Nabil FahmyFounding Dean of the School of Global Affairs and Public PolicyThe American University of Cairo & Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Egypt

SECOND KEYNOTE SPEECH HE Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood AlbusaidiSecretary-General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Oman

SESSION ONE: INFRASTRUCTURESSession Chair: Dr Evan FeigenbaumVice-President for Studies, Asia Pacific Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Professor David PassigFuturist & Associate Professor, Bar-Ilan University, Tel Aviv, Israel

Professor Wang ZhenResearch Professor, International Studies, & Deputy Director of the Center for West Asia & North Africa Studies, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, China

CONFERENCE SCHEDULEDAY ONE: WINDS OF CHANGE IN THE MIDDLE EAST

WEDNESDAY, 15 JANUARY 2020

9.25am

9.30am

9.40am

10.00am

10.30am

11.00am

9.15am


Dr Abdulrahman ZamilChairman of the Board of Directors Zamil Industrial Investment Company, Saudi Arabia

Dr Hatim Al-ShanfariFaculty Member, Department of Economics and Finance, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman

Mr Fazlur Rahman Bin KamsaniBoard Member, Middle East Institute, NUS

Lunch

SESSION TWO: THE TRANSFORMATION OF POLITICS AND SOCIETYSession Chair: Ms Michelle TeoActing Director, Middle East Institute, NUS

Professor Vali NasrMajid Khadduri Professor of International Affairs and Middle East Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, US

Professor Lilia LabidiAnthropologist, University of Tunis, Tunisia & Former Minister of Women’s Affairs, Tunisia

Professor Abdullah Saleh Abdullah Ba Abood Visiting Research Professor, Middle East Institute, NUS

Dr Makio MiyagawaFormer Ambassador of Japan to Malaysia

End of Day One

CONFERENCE SCHEDULEDAY ONE: WINDS OF CHANGE IN THE MIDDLE EAST

WEDNESDAY, 15 JANUARY 2020

12.30pm

1.30pm

3.00pm


Registration

RECAP OF DAY ONE SESSIONSMs Michelle TeoActing Director, Middle East Institute, NUS

THIRD KEYNOTE SPEECH — WHAT IS THE EAST ASIAN EXPERIENCE?Professor Ezra F VogelHenry Ford II Professor of Social Sciences Emeritus, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, US

SESSION THREE: IS THE EAST ASIA EXPERIENCE RELEVANT?Session Chair: Mr Bert HofmanDirector, East Asian InstituteProfessor in Practice, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS

Mr Memduh KarakullukçuVice-Chairman, Global Relations Forum, Turkey

Ms Rana Karadsheh-HaddadRegional Industry Director, Manufacturing, Agribusiness and ServicesAsia and Pacific, International Finance Corporation

Professor Yitzhak ShichorProfessor Emeritus, Political Science and Asian StudiesUniversity of Haifa, Tel Aviv, Israel

Professor Pan GuangDirector and Professor, Center of SCO & BRI Studies,Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, China

Dr Mohammed Turki Al-SudairiHead, Asian Studies Unit,King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Coffee Break

CONFERENCE SCHEDULEDAY TWO: IS THE EAST ASIAN MODEL RELEVANT TO THE MIDDLE EAST

THURSDAY, 16 JANUARY 2020

8.30am

9.30am

9.45am

10.15am

11.15am


FOURTH KEYNOTE SPEECHMr Ong Ye KungMinister for Education, Singapore

FIFTH KEYNOTE SPEECH HE Dr Ahmad Belhoul Al FalasiMinister of State for Higher Education and Advanced Skills,United Arab Emirates

QUESTION & ANSWER SESSION WITH BOTH MINISTERSSession Chair: Mr Bilahari KausikanChairman, Middle East Institute, NUS

Photo Session

Lunch

SESSION FOUR: THE ROLE OF EDUCATIONSession Chair: Mr Carl SkadianAssociate Director, Middle East Institute, NUS

Dr Jang Ji-HyangDirector, Middle East and North Africa CenterAsan Institute for Policy Studies, Seoul, South Korea

Ms Liew Wei LiDeputy Director-General, Ministry of Education, Singapore

Dr Hassan Rashid Al-DerhamPresident, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar

SIXTH KEYNOTE SPEECH HE Dr Alwi ShihabPresident’s Envoy to the Middle East and OIC Indonesia, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Indonesia



11.30am

11.40am

12.10pm

12.40pm

3.00pm

1.00pm

2.00pm


CLOSING DIALOGUE: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?Session Chair: Professor Wang Gungwu University Professor, NUS & Emeritus Professor, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

Mr Gita WirjawanChairman, Ancora Group& Former Minister of Trade, Indonesia

HE Ron ProsorHead of the Abba Eban Institute of International Diplomacy Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Tel Aviv, Israel

HE Dr Kassim BuallayFormer Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Bahrain

HE Shivshankar MenonDistinguished Fellow, Brookings India& Former National Security Advisor of India

Professor Fumio HoshiAdjunct Professor, Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University& Independent Executive Director, ThirdWave Corporation, Japan

Close of Conference



3.30pm

5.00pm

SPEAKER PROFILES


MR THARMAN SHANMUGARATNAMSenior Minister and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies Singapore

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam was appointed senior minister in Singapore’s Cabinet on 1 May 2019. He is also coordinating minister for social policies and advises the prime minister on economic policies. He had previously served, from 2011, as deputy prime minister.

He is concurrently the chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Singapore’s central bank and financial regulator. In addition to his responsibilities in the government, he also serves as deputy chairman of GIC and chairs its Investment Strategies Committee.

Mr Shanmugaratnam chairs the Group of Thirty, an independent global council of economic and financial leaders. He also chaired the G20 Eminent Persons Group on Global Financial Governance, which, in October 2018, proposed reforms for a more effective system of global finance for development, sustainability and financial stability.

Prior to that, he led the International Monetary and Financial Committee, the key policy forum of the International Monetary Fund, for four years from 2011 as its first Asian chair. He currently co-chairs the advisory board for the United Nations’ 2019 Human Development Report, and serves on the World Economic Forum’s board of trustees.

Mr Shanmugaratnam has spent his working life in public service, in roles principally related to economic and social policies. Besides serving as deputy prime minister, he was coordinating minister for economic and social policies for four years (from 2015). he was also minister for finance for eight years (from 2007) and minister for education for five years (from 2003). He has been chairman of MAS since 2011

SPEAKER PROFILES


MR ONG YE KUNGMinister for Education, Singapore

Mr Ong Ye Kung is Singapore’s minister for education. He was elected member of parliament for Sembawang Group Representation Constituency in September 2015, and appointed to the Cabinet of Singapore on 1 October 2015. He had held the positions of minister for education (higher education and skills) and second minister for defence. He is concurrently a board member of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and chairman of the Chinese Development Assistance Council.

Prior to his Cabinet appointment, he was director of group strategy at Keppel Corporation, overseeing long term strategic planning of the group’s activities.

Before joining Keppel Corporation, he was the deputy secretary-general of National Trades Union Congress, overseeing the labour movement’s employment and employability programmes.

Other positions he held in the government included being chief executive of the former Singapore Workforce Development Agency, during which he spearheaded many initiatives to build up the continuing education and training infrastructure.

Between 2003 and 2005, he was principal private secretary to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and prior to that, he was Mr Lee’s press secretary from 1997 to 2003. He was also the deputy chief negotiator for the United States–Singapore Free Trade Agreement.

Mr Ong graduated from the London School of Economics and Political Science (UK) with a BSc (Econs), first class honours. He also holds a master of business administration from the Institute of Management Development, Lausanne, Switzerland.

SPEAKER PROFILES


HE NABIL FAHMYFounding Dean of the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, The American University of Cairo & Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Egypt

Mr Nabil Fahmy is a career diplomat and served as Egypt’s foreign minister between July 2013 and June 2014, during which he steered the course of the country’s diplomacy during a time of immense challenge. As foreign minister, he formulated a strategy to reorient Egypt’s foreign policy, ensuring that it had numerous foreign policy options both regionally and globally.

During his distinguished diplomatic career of over three decades (1976–2011), Mr Fahmy served as ambassador to the United States (1999–2008) and Japan (1997–1999), as well as in numerous government and international positions. His work focused on international and regional security, disarmament and non-proliferation, conflict resolution and Arab–Israeli diplomacy.

He served as the chairman of the United Nations Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters, and the vice-chairman of the United Nations General Assembly’s first committee dealing with disarmament and international security. He was also a member of the Egyptian delegation to the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference; the Review Conferences of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons; the Committee on Principles in the United Nations Conference on Promoting International Cooperation in the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy and many other multilateral events.

Mr Fahmy also founded the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at The American University in Cairo in 2009. Its programmes are accredited domestically and internationally, and the school has become an invaluable Middle Eastern voice on public affairs, law, journalism, as well as studies on the Middle East, refugees, and gender and American studies.

SPEAKER PROFILES


HE SAYYID BADR BIN HAMAD BIN HAMOOD ALBUSAIDISecretary-General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Oman

His Excellency Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi is secretary-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Oman, holding the rank of minister. He has represented Oman in regional and international meetings, including at the United Nations.

SPEAKER PROFILES


PROFESSOR EZRA F VOGELHenry Ford II Professor, Social Sciences Emeritus

Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, US

Professor Ezra F Vogel is the Henry Ford II Professor of the Social Sciences Emeritus at Harvard University. After graduating from Ohio Wesleyan in 1950 and serving two years in the US Army, he studied sociology in the Department of Social Relations at Harvard, receiving his PhD in 1958. He then went to Japan for two years to study the Japanese language and conduct research interviews with middle-class families.

In 1960 to 1961, he was an assistant professor at Yale University and from 1961 to 1964, he was a post-doctoral fellow at Harvard, studying Chinese language and history. He remained at Harvard, becoming a lecturer in 1964 and a professor in 1967. He retired from teaching on 30 June 2000.

Professor Vogel succeeded Professor John Fairbank to become the second director (1972–1977) of Harvard’s East Asian Research Center and chairman of the Council for East Asian Studies (1977–1980). He was director of the Programme on US–Japan Relations at the Center for International Affairs (1980–1987) and, since 1987, an honorary director.

He was chairman of the Undergraduate Concentration in East Asian Studies from its inception in 1972 until 1991. He was director of the Fairbank Center (1995–1999) and the first director of the Asia Center (1997–1999). He was chairman of the Harvard Committee to Welcome President Jiang Zemin (1998), and also served as co-director of the Asia Foundation Task Force on East Asian Policy Recommendations for the New Administration (2001).

Drawing on his original fieldwork in Japan, he wrote Japan’s New Middle Class (1963). A book based on several years of interviewing and reading materials from China, Canton Under Communism (1969), won the Harvard University Press faculty book of the year award. The Japanese edition of his book Japan as Number One: Lessons for America (1979) is the all-time bestseller in Japan of non-fiction by a western author. His most recent publication is Is Japan Still Number One? (2000).

He has visited East Asia every summer since 1958 and has spent a total of over six years in Asia. He has lectured frequently in Asia, in both Chinese and Japanese.

SPEAKER PROFILES


HE DR AHMAD BELHOUL AL FALASIMinister of State for Higher Education and Advanced Skills, United Arab Emirates

Appointed minister of state for higher education in February 2016, Dr Ahmad bin Abdullah Humaid Belhoul Al Falasi’s role is to supervise the development of higher education and scientific research in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

In October 2017, His Excellency’s portfolio was expanded to include advanced skills to equip UAE youth with the necessary skills for the future.

Dr Al Falasi is currently the chairman of the Federal Authority for Human Resources, and has been the chairman of UAE Space Agency since June 2017. His Excellency represents the space sector in the National Science, Technology and Innovation Committee.

Previously, he held the position of chief executive officer at Masdar. He was also executive director of strategy and tourism sector development at Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, and vice-president of industry unit of Mubadala Development Company. He has had experience working with management consulting firm McKinsey & Company.

Dr Al Falasi has a PhD from Sir John Monash University, a master’s degree from Australia’s University of Melbourne, and a bachelor in telecommunications engineering from Khalifa University of Science, Technology & Research, UAE.

SPEAKER PROFILES


HE DR ALWI SHIHABPresident’s Envoy to the Middle East and the OIC Indonesia & Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Indonesia

Dr Alwi Shihab has been the Indonesian president’s adviser and special envoy to the Middle East and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation since 2006.

Prior to his current role, he held prominent positions in the Indonesian government. He served as the coordinating minister for people’s welfare between 2004 and 2005, and as the foreign minister between 2000 and 2004.

Dr Shihab is a leading authority and scholar on the interaction of Christian and Muslim communities. He holds several degrees and served at Hartford Seminary in Hartford as a professor of religion. He was also a fellow and a visiting professor at Harvard University.

He obtained his bachelor and master’s degrees from Cairo’s Al-Azhar University in 1966 and 1968 respectively. He also earned a bachelor’s degree in Islamic philosophy from IAIN Alauddin, Ujung Pandang, Indonesia in 1986.

In 1990, he received his PhD from Cairo’s University of Ain Shams. Subsequently, he went on to obtain another master’s degree from Temple University in the United States, followed by yet another PhD from the same university in 1995. Between 1995 and 1996, Dr Shihab received another post-doctorate degree from Harvard University’s Divinity School.

He served as a professor at several universities in Indonesia and the US.

Dr Shihab has authored many books and articles on Islam and Christianity relations. His vision is focused on peace advocacy. He is dedicated to eradicating radicalism that plagues both Islam and the West and highlighting the similarities between Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.

He also established various businesses, including Glass Priangan Factory in Indonesia and Alfa Contracting Co in Jeddah.

SPEAKER PROFILES


MR BILAHARI KAUSIKANChairman, Middle East Institute, NUS

Mr Bilahari Kausikan is the chairman of the Middle East Institute, an autonomous institute of the National University of Singapore. Mr Kausikan was permanent secretary of Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2010 to 2013, having served as second permanent secretary since 2001. He was subsequently ambassador-at-large until May 2018. His earlier appointments at the ministry include deputy secretary for South-east Asia, permanent representative to the United Nations in New York, and ambassador to the Russian Federation.

Raffles Institution, the University of Singapore and Columbia University in New York all attempted to educate Mr Kausikan.


DR EVAN FEIGENBAUMVice-President for Studies, Asia Pacific, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Dr Evan A Feigenbaum is vice-president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he oversees research in Washington, Beijing and New Delhi on a dynamic region encompassing both East Asia and South Asia. He is also the 2019–20 James R Schlesinger Distinguished Professor at the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia. Initially an academic with a PhD in Chinese politics from Stanford University, Dr Feigenbaum’s career has spanned government service, think tanks, the private sector, and three major regions of Asia.

SESSION ONE: THE FUTURE OF ECONOMIC REFORMS

CHAIRPERSON

For both East Asia and the Middle East, economic reform has become a necessity in the face of a changing world economy. East Asia today faces a declining and rapidly ageing population. In contrast, the Middle East has a demographic dividend, with a large, youthful population, but a dearth of economic opportunities. Countries like Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar seem to recognise this and understand that transformation is needed. But are current plans enough? What is the progress of plans such as Saudi Vision 2030? What more must be done in terms of economic reforms?

PANELLISTS


PROFESSOR DAVID PASSIGFuturist & Associate Professor, Bar-Ilan University Tel Aviv, Israel

PROFESSOR WANG ZHENResearch Professor, International Studies & Deputy Director of the Center for West Asia & North Africa Studies, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, China

Professor David Passig is an Israeli futurist, lecturer, consultant and best-selling author who specialises in technological, social and educational futures. He holds a PhD in future studies from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA. He is an associate professor at Bar-Ilan University, where he heads the graduate programme in communication technologies and the VR Lab. He has consulted for many corporations, public and private sector institutes. He chairs FutureCode Ltd, which develops and employs toolkits of futures methods in decision making processes. He is also co-founder of ThinkZ Ltd, which develops Internet of Things technologies. Professor Passig has served as the chief advisor to the commissioner for future generations in the Israeli parliament. Among his many activities, he is a member of the Israeli National Council for research and development. His bestselling books are The Future Code, 2048 and Forcognito, which have received Israel’s coveted Gold Book Award.

Dr Wang Zhen, a research professor of international studies at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences (SASS), is currently the deputy director of the Center for West Asia & North Africa Studies at the SASS, and a council member of China Middle East Studies Society. He received his PhD in international politics from the Shanghai International Studies University. Dr Wang was an exchange scholar at the Tel Aviv University between 2005 and 2006, the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies in 2015, and a senior visiting fellow of Harvard-Yenching Institute between 2018 and 2019. Focusing on international security and China’s foreign policy studies, Dr Wang has published numerous papers in leading academic journals such as Asia Perspective, International Politics Quarterly, Contemporary International Relations, Journal of Social Sciences, Historical Review, and World Affairs. He is the author of The US Nuclear Non-Proliferation Policy during the Transformation Period of the Cold War (1969–1976): Cases of India, Israel and Taiwan (2013) and A New Theory on the Global War on Terrorism (2018).

PANELLISTS


DR ABDULRAHMAN ABDULLA AL ZAMILChairman of the Board of Directors, Zamil Industrial Investment Company, Saudi Arabia

DR HATIM AL-SHANFARIFaculty Member, Department of Economics and Finance, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman

Dr Abdulrahman Al Zamil was elected chairman of the board of directors of Zamil Industrial Investment Company since its formation in 1998. He started his distinguished career in 1973 as an assistant professor at King Fahad University of Petroleum and Minerals in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. In 1977, he was appointed deputy governor of electricity, and served as deputy minister of commerce in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from 1980 to 1996. He was selected as a board member of the Al Shoura Consultative Council for 12 years.Dr Al Zamil has represented the government of Saudi Arabia and headed many delegations to various international conferences and events on industry and development. He is the author of many publications. He received his BA in law from Cairo University and his PhD in international relations from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Dr Hatim Al-Shanfari has diverse experience that spans academia, business, and civil society in Oman. He is currently a faculty member at the Department of Economics and Finance at Sultan Qaboos University, vice chairman of the board of Omani Economic Association, chairman of Gulf Investment Services Company, chairman of Gulf Baader Capital Markets Company, and chairman of the First Mazoon Fund. Dr Al-Shanfari’s previous experience included being a member of the board of governors of the Central Bank of Oman, board memberships of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Galfar Engineering & Contracting Company, Al-Omaniya Financial Services Company, and Omani Packaging Company.He holds a doctorate in economics from University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. He also earned an MA in economic planning from the Institute of Social Studies at the Hague, the Netherlands, and a BSc in engineering from Washington University in St Louis, Missouri, USA.

PANELLISTS


MR FAZLUR RAHMAN BIN KAMSANIBoard Member, Middle East Institute, NUS

Mr Fazlur Rahman Bin Kamsani is a board member of Middle East Institute at National University of Singapore. He is currently assistant representative of Doha Bank at its Singapore Representative Office. He has been tasked by the chief executive officer of Doha Bank to assistant the bank’s risk management department in supporting the business units under its wholesale banking group. His role in the Singapore Representative Office is to support the international operations and to promote connectivity between companies in Singapore and globally with Qatar.


MS MICHELLE TEOActing Director, Middle East Institute, NUS

Ms Michelle Teo has more than 20 years’ experience in both the government and private sectors. Her career has spanned international relations, corporate and digital communications, and the globe. Ms Teo’s career with Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has taken her to Europe, Australia, North America, the Middle East, North and South-east Asia. She served as Singapore’s deputy high commissioner in Canberra, Australia. She then joined IBM, first as communications leader with IBM Singapore and later with IBM Asean. Prior to joining the Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore, Ms Teo was working with local small- and medium-sized enterprises, focused on digital content re-design for Singapore government agencies.

SESSION TWO: THE TRANSFORMATION OF POLITICS AND SOCIET Y

CHAIRPERSON

Economic transformation is impossible without political and social transformation. How have religion, gender, and politics in general been impacted by the recognition among many in the Middle East that their economies must diversify if they are to continue to thrive? How will governments manage this as change takes hold?

PANELLISTS


PROFESSOR VALI NASRMajid Khadduri Professor of International Affairs and Middle East Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, US

PROFESSOR LILIA LABIDIAnthropologist, University of Tunis, Tunisia & Former Minister of Women’s Affairs, Tunisia

Professor Vali Nasr is the Majid Khadduri Professor of International Affairs and Middle East Studies at the Paul H Nitze School of Advanced International Studies of Johns Hopkins University. Between 2012 and 2019, he served as dean of the school. Between 2009 and 2011, he was senior advisor to Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, US special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan. Professor Nasr is author of The Dispensable Nation: American Foreign Policy in Retreat; Forces of Fortune: The Rise of a New Middle Class and How it Will Change Our World; The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam will Shape the Future and Democracy in Iran: History and the Quest for Liberty. He has advised senior American policymakers, world leaders, and businesses, including the president, secretary of state, senior members of the Congress, and presidential campaigns. He has written for The New York Times, Foreign Affairs, Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. He is a member of international board of advisors of the Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University, the international board of advisors at the American University of Beirut, and the board of advisors of S Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. He has been the recipient of grants from the John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation, The Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation, and the Social Science Research Council. He is a Carnegie scholar for 2006.

Professor Lilia Labidi is a professor at the University of Tunis. She is an anthropologist with a PhD from the University of Paris VII. Professor Labidi has held fellowships at the Institute for Advanced Study (Princeton, New Jersey) and at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (Washington, DC), and she has been visiting professor at the American University in Cairo (Egypt) and Yale University (USA). From January to December 2011, Professor Labidi was minister for women’s affairs in the provisional Tunisian government, following the fall of the Ben Ali regime. From January 2012 through to August 2014, she was a visiting research professor at the Middle East Institute, National University of Singapore. She is the author of several books and numerous articles on the Arab world, dealing with subjects such as the history of the feminist movement, psychology and sexuality, the construction of identity, attitudes towards death, the aftermath of the Arab spring, and others.

PANELLISTS


PROFESSOR ABDULLAH SALEH ABDULLAH BA ABOODVisiting Research Professor, Middle East Institute, NUS

DR MAKIO MIYAGAWAFormer Ambassador of Japan to Malaysia

Professor Abdullah Saleh Abdullah Ba Abood is an Omani academic and researcher, and the former director of the Centre for Gulf Studies at Qatar University. He holds a PhD in international relations from the University of Cambridge, a master’s degree in international relations from University of Kent and a MBA from Strayer University, USA.His research interests are international relations; international political economy; Gulf affairs; economic, social and political development in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and their foreign relations. Professor Ba Abood has taught and conducted research at several universities and institutions in Europe, and has published numerous books, articles and conference papers.

Dr Makio Miyagawa is a former Japanese ambassador to Malaysia. He held successive positions in Japan’s foreign ministry, including legal desk chief, deputy director of US–Japan Trade Division and Russian Division, director in Economic Affairs Bureau and Asia Oceanian Bureau, deputy director-general (DG) of climate change negotiations, DG of nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament, and DG of Middle East and North Africa. Dr Miagawa served in the Japanese embassy in the UK and Malaysia, and in the Japanese mission in Geneva. He received his DPhil in international relations from Oxford University, and his BSc in aeronautical and spacecraft engineering from the University of Tokyo. He lectured at the Graduate Institute for Policy Studies and at the University of Tokyo. He also directed the Japan Institute of International Affairs. He has published numerous books and articles. He is a recipient of the Commandeur de L’Ordre National du Mérite au grade from France.


MR BERT HOFMANDirector, East Asian Institute, NUS & Professor in Practice, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS

Mr Bert Hofman, a Dutch national, is director of the East Asian Institute at the National University of Singapore (NUS) and a professor of practice at NUS’s Lee Kuan Yew School. Before joining NUS, he worked with the World Bank for 27 years, 22 of which were in Asia, and 12 of which were in China. Mr Hofman was the World Bank country director for China between 2014 and 2019, the country economist between 2004 and 2008, and chief economist for the World Bank in the East Asia and Pacific region from 2011 to 2014. He also worked on Indonesia, the Philippines, Korea and Mongolia. Before working at the World Bank, Mr Hofman worked at the Kiel Institute of World Economics, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation Development and NMB Bank (Now ING). Mr Hofman has extensive experience in advising governments around the region on a wide range of development issues, and he has published on fiscal policy, debt issues, and China’s and Indonesia’s recent economic history.

SESSION THREE: IS THE EAST ASIA EXPERIENCE RELEVANT?

CHAIRPERSON

While the differences between East Asia and the Middle East are obvious, East Asia continues to adapt and adjust to continuing changes in the global economy. But are there nonetheless aspects of the East Asian transformation experience that are relevant to the Middle East? How can these countries undertake the needed changes in order to become competitive economically?

NUS MEI | 23

PANELLISTS


MR MEMDUH KARAKULLUKÇUVice-Chairman, Global Relations Forum, Istanbul, Turkey

Mr Memduh Karakullukçu is vice-chairman and founding president (2009–2019) of the Global Relations Forum, Istanbul. Previously, he advised Istanbul Technical University’s (ITU) president and served as the founding managing director of ITU ARI Science Park, Istanbul’s leading technology entrepreneurship community. Mr Karakullukçu has served as a member of the academic staff at ITU and the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Earlier, he worked as a specialist in structured finance in London and Istanbul. He studied electrical engineering and economy (BSc) at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, finance (MSc) at LSE, and law (JD) at Columbia University. Mr Karakullukçu is a regular commentator at international fora, carving an intellectual space at the interface of geopolitics, geo-economics and technology. His policy work includes economic prospects of the Middle East and North Africa region, technology and security, global energy dynamics, European energy security and global economic/financial governance. Mr Karakullukçu continues to serve as managing partner of his consultancy firm, Kroton Consulting. He is a member of the New York State Bar.

MS RANA KARADSHEH-HADDADRegional Industry Director, Manufacturing, Agribusiness & Services, Asia and Pacific, International Finance Corporation (IFC)

Ms Rana Karadsheh-Haddad has over 20 years of experience in the field of international investing and finance. She is currently regional industry director for manufacturing, agribusiness & services, South Asia, East Asia and Pacific for the International Finance Corporation (IFC). She heads agribusiness & forestry, chemicals & fertilisers, construction materials, health & education, machinery, manufacturing, tourism, retail, and property. She manages a diverse team located in 16 offices in the both South Asia, East Asia and Pacific.Prior to this, she was country manager leading IFC’s operations in Singapore, which includes infrastructure investments; infrastructure advisory; agribusiness; telecommunications, media and technology, private equity, and technology investments; IFC’s Asia Treasury Hub and three of IFC’s Asset Management Funds. She was also leading the infrastructure investment team covering Singapore and the Philippines. Previously, she was the Europe, Middle East and North Africa head for the global chemicals group, leading multidisciplinary teams in executing capital intensive projects and leading IFC’s global fertiliser strategy. Ms Karadsheh-Haddad’s deals have included debt, equity, quasi-equity transactions in Europe, Latin America, Asia and the Middle East for new ventures, expansions, operational turnarounds and acquisitions a range of sectors, including infrastructure, fertiliser, chemical and petrochemical sectors. Ms Karadsheh-Haddad holds an MBA and an MA in international economics from the George Washington University and a BA in Economics and French from The University of Michigan.

PANELLISTS


PROFESSOR YITZHAK SHICHOR Professor Emeritus, Political Science and Asian Studies, University of Haifa, Tel Aviv, Israel

Professor Yitzhak Shichor is Professor Emeritus of Political Science and Asian Studies at the University of Haifa, and Michael William Lipson Chair Professor Emeritus at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He was dean of students at the Hebrew University, and head of Tel-Hai Academic College. Professor Shichor received his PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science. His main research interests are on China’s arms transactions and defence conversion, Middle East policy, international energy relations, labour export, Sino–Uyghur relations, and Xinjiang. His recent publications include “False Alarm: Uyghur Unrest in Xinjiang and China’s National Security” in Routledge Handbook of Asian Security, second edition (2018); China and Israel from Discord to Concord (2016); and “Breakthrough: Israel’s Great Leap Forward into Asia,” in Israel in a Turbulent Region: Security and Foreign Policy (2019).

PROFESSOR PAN GUANGProfessor, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences & Director, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and BRI Studies Centre, Shanghai, China

Professor Pan Guang is professor of Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences and director of Shanghai Co-operation Organisation and Belt and Road Studies Centre in Shanghai. He is also dean of Center for Jewish Studies Shanghai (CJSS) and vice-president of Chinese Association of Middle East Studies. He is an international council member of Asia Society in USA. He obtained the 1993 James Friend Annual Memorial Award for Sino–Jewish Studies, the Sankt Peterburg-300 Medal for Contribution to China–Russia Relations awarded by President Vladimir Putin in 2004, and the Austria Holocaust Memorial Award in 2006. Professor Pan was appointed by the United Nations secretary-general as ambassador of the United Nations Alliance of Civilisation in 2008. He has lectured and conducted research all over the world, including at Harvard University, Columbia University, RAND Corp, the Brookings Institution, Stanford University, Oxford University, Leiden University, The Emirates Center for Strategic Studies & Research in the UAE, and Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

PANELLISTS


DR MOHAMMED TURKI AL-SUDAIRI Head of the Asian Studies Unit, King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Dr Mohammed Turki Al-Sudairi is head of the Asian Studies Unit at the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies. He is also concurrently a researcher at the Hong Kong Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Hong Kong. Dr Al-Sudairi earned a BSc in international politics from the Edmund Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University, and a double master’s degree in international relations and international history from Peking University and the London School of Economics and Politics. He received his PhD in comparative politics from the University of Hong Kong. His research largely focuses on Chinese domestic politics, normative transnational links in Sino–Middle Eastern relations, and the Arab left.


MR CARL SKADIANAssociate Director, Middle East Institute, NUS

Mr Carl Skadian has been a journalist for 30 years. He is a multiple-award winner who has held a variety of senior leadership roles at the TODAY newspaper and The Straits Times. He had been deputy editor, leading daily editorial operations across the print and digital spectrums, on everything from features to important local and foreign news. He has managed a team of correspondents scattered around the globe, budgeted for various bureaus, and kept in touch with the government and understanding Singapore’s foreign policy objectives, challenges, and dilemmas, among others.

SESSION FOUR: THE ROLE OF EDUCATION

CHAIRPERSON

The success of East Asia showed that a high level of education is a key factor in the transformation of any economy. How have countries like Singapore designed education systems that develop efficient human capital? Can countries in the Middle East replicate such systems and advances?

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PANELLISTS


DR JANG HI-HYANGDirector, MENA Center, Asan Institute for Policy Studies, Seoul, South Korea

MS LIEW WEI LIDeputy Director-General, Ministry of Education, Singapore

Dr JANG Ji-Hyang is a senior fellow and director of Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Center at Seoul’s Asan Institute for Policy Studies. She served as a policy advisor to Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs between 2012 and 2018. Dr Jang also serves as an advisor on Middle East issues to Korea’s Ministries of Trade, Industry and Energy; Justice; and Defense. Her research interests include political economy of the Middle East, political Islam, comparative democratisation, terrorism, and state-building. Dr Jang is the author of numerous books and articles, including The Arab Spring: Will It Lead to Democratic Transitions? (co-edited with Clement Henry, Palgrave Macmillan 2013), “Disaggregated ISIS and the New Normal of Terrorism” in Asan Issue Brief 2016, and “Islamic Fundamentalism” in International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences 2008. Dr Jang received a BA and an MA from the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and her PhD in political science from the University of Texas at Austin.

Ms Liew Wei Li is deputy director-general of Education (Schools) and director of Schools in Singapore’s Ministry of Education. She leads a team of cluster superintendents with oversight of some 350 mainstream schools, and senior officers in charge of school leadership development, quality assurance of schools, data management tools for schools, pre-school education and educational support. Before this appointment, she was one of the divisional directors in charge of development the curriculum for all mainstream schools in the Ministry of Education (2011–2016) and was a principal of an autonomous government co-educational school for four years (2007–2010). Ms Liew is a trained teacher with a first class honours in natural sciences (physical) from Cambridge University, United Kingdom. She also has a postgraduate diploma in education with distinction from Nanyang Technological University’s National Institute of Education and a masters in education from Harvard Graduate School of Education. She started her education career as a chemistry teacher in a junior college.She worked with a wide range of employers in Singapore when she established a new Quality Workplaces Department in Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower (2003–2005) as a director. In that capacity, she developed and reviewed the overall framework and policies to bring about great workplaces from both employees’ and employers’ point of view.

PANELLISTS


DR HASSAN RASHID AL-DERHAM President, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar

As Qatar University’s sixth president, Dr Hassan Rashid Al-Derham is recognised for playing a major role in advancing research activity at both university and national levels.Dr Al-Derham assumed the position of president on 15 June 2015. Previously as vice-president for research from 2007, he guided the university to its current position as leader of research excellence in the Gulf Cooperation Council region, which was enhanced by its continuous success in winning the largest percentage of grants in the National Priorities Research Program and Undergraduate Research Experience Program under the Qatar National Research Fund.He also served in several earlier roles at the university, including as associate vice-president for research and head of civil engineering at the College of Engineering.He holds a PhD and post-graduate diploma in construction project management from University of Glamorgan (currently University of South Wales), UK. He obtained his master in civil engineering from Georgia Tech, USA. For his undergraduate, he majored in architectural engineering at North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University, USA.During his term as vice-president for research, Dr Al-Derham also successfully developed and implemented the organisation’s research policies, procedures, and priorities, as well as an ambitious research roadmap fielding strategic national priorities.Additionally, under his leadership, several research centres were initiated, including the Gas Processing Center, Qatar Transportation and Traffic Safety Center, Qatar Mobility Innovations Center, KINDI Lab for Computing Research, Laboratory Animal Research Center, and the Biomedical Research Center. He also led the inauguration of the university research complex.Dr Al-Derham’s research interests include construction productivity, project optimization, legal contracts and procurement. In 2009, along with his research team, he won Best Paper of the Year in the American Society of Civil Engineers Journal of Construction Engineering and Management. He is also a member of several professional international societies and organisations.


PROFESSOR WANG GUNGWUUniversity Professor, NUS & Emeritus Professor, Australian National University

Professor Wang Gungwu is University Professor at National University of Singapore’s (NUS) faculty of arts and social sciences since 2007, and Emeritus Professor of Australian National University since 1988. He is a foreign honorary member of the history division of the American Academy of Arts and Science, and former president of the Australian Academy of the Humanities.He received his BA and MA from University of Malaya (UM) in Singapore, and his PhD at SOAS University of London. His early teaching career was in UM’s history department in Singapore and then in Kuala Lumpur. He held the History Chair at UM in KL between 1963 and 1968. He was then appointed to the Chair of Far Eastern History at the Australian National University between 1968 and 1986. From 1986 to 1995, he was vice-chancellor (president) of the University of Hong Kong. In Singapore, he was director of the East Asian Institute until 2007.His books include The Nanhai Trade: The Early History of Chinese Trade in the South China Sea, new edition (1998); The Chinese Overseas: From Earthbound China to the Quest for Autonomy (2000); Anglo-Chinese Encounters since 1800: war, trade, science and governance (2003); Divided China: Preparing for reunification, 883-947 (2007); Renewal: The Chinese State and the New Global History (2013); and Another China Cycle: Committing to Reform (2014).

CLOSING SESSION: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

CHAIRPERSON

This conference opened with the question of whether or not there were lessons that the Middle East could learn from East Asia. We have considered the impact of transformation in education, on the economy and on politics and society. As we conclude, we must ask ourselves, are there lessons to be learned and if not, why? Are those lessons simply irrelevant or can these be adapted to suit the Middle East? What factors could stymie the transformation of countries in the Middle East?

PANELLISTS


HE RON PROSORHead of the Abba Eban Institute of International Diplomacy, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Tel Aviv, Israel

MR GITA WIRJAWAN Chairman, Ancora Group, Jakarta, Indonesia & Former Minister of Trade of the Republic of Indonesia

Ambassador Ron Prosor is the head of the Abba Eban Institute of International Diplomacy at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya (IDC). Prior to joining IDC, Mr Prosor served as Israel’s 16th permanent representative to the United Nations from 2011 to 2015. During his term as Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Mr Prosor was vice-president of the General Assembly (GA). He chaired the GA’s first debate on antisemitism, and oversaw the passing of major resolutions, including the recognition of Yom Kipur as an official UN holiday. Mr Prosor’s previous overseas service has included roles in Washington, London and Bonn. He was instrumental in establishing diplomatic relations behind the Iron Curtain following the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. He was also a member of Israel’s delegation to the Wye River Summit talks in 1998 and served as the minister-counsellor for political affairs at the Israeli embassy in Washington. Mr Prosor holds a master’s degree in political science from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he graduated with distinction.

Mr Gita Wirjawan is chairman of Ancora Group, an Indonesian business group with interests in private equity investing, natural resources, real estate, sports, and music, which he founded in 2008. He served as minister of trade and was chairman of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) of the Indonesian government between 2009 and 2014. As an investment banker, Mr Wirjawan has held key senior appointments at Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, playing leading roles in many mergers, corporate restructuring, corporate financing and strategic sales involving leading companies in South-east Asia. Mr Wirjawan is currently a member of international advisory board of the CHUBB group of insurance companies, and a member of advisory board of Alpha JWC Ventures, a South-east Asian venture capital firm. In education, Mr Wirjawan sits on the council of global advisors for Yale University’s School of Management, and the board of governors for the Asia School of Business (MIT Sloan School of Management).

PANELLISTS


HE DR KASSIM MOHAMMED BUALLAYFormer Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Bahrain

HE SHIVSHANKAR MENON Distinguished Fellow, Brookings India & Former National Security Advisor of India

Dr Kassim Buallay has served for more than three decades in the Bahraini government. He was the country’s first ambassador to France, and its permanent representative to the United Nations, among other postings. His other responsibilities include being the permanent representative of Bahrain to the Arab League in Tunis (1987), and serving as deputy chairman (1983) and chairman (1984) of the Administration & Finance Committee of the Unicef executive board and first vice-president of the board (1985). He obtained a PhD in international relations in 2005, and holds decorations from Bahrain, France, Tunisia, and Morocco.

Ambassador Shivshankar Menon is currently a visiting professor at Ashoka University, India. He is concurrently chairman of the Institute of Chinese Studies’ advisory board in New Delhi and a member of the board of trustees of International Crisis Group. He is also a distinguished fellow of Brookings India, a distinguished visiting research fellow at the National University of Singapore, and a distinguished fellow of Asia Society Policy Institute in New York.HE Menon was previously national security advisor to the prime minister of India from January 2010 to May 2014. He also served as foreign secretary of India from October 2006 to July 2009, and has served as Indian ambassador or high commissioner to China, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Israel.In 2016 he published Choices: Inside the Making of Indian Foreign Policy (2016).He has been a Fisher Family Fellow at the Kennedy School, Harvard University, 2015, and Richard Wilhelm Fellow at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2015. In 2010, he was chosen one of the “top 100 global thinkers” by Foreign Policy magazine.

PANELLISTS


PROFESSOR FUMIO HOSHIAdjunct Professor, Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University & Independent Executive Director, ThirdWave Corporation, Japan

Mr Fumio Hoshi is an adjunct professor of the Graduate School of Management of Kyoto University. He graduated from Keio University’s Faculty of Law. In 1973, Mr Hoshi joined The Export-Import Bank of Japan. In 1999, he served as director-general of International Finance Policy Department of Japan Bank for international co-operation.He is currently an independent executive director for Humans Associates Holdings Inc and SDG Corp since 2017. Mr Hoshi is also serving as an independent executive director of ThirdWave Corporation since 2018.

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