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Empowering Academia in Strategic Trade Governance

In an era where innovation moves at the speed of science, academic institutions play an increasingly critical role in the prevention of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) proliferation. On 30 October 2024, the Centre for Trade Excellence was honoured to participate in the UNSCR 1540 Regional Outreach to Academia Conference for Southeast Asia, held in Singapore.

Titled "Engaging Academia in Multilateral Export Controls", the conference was part of the Erlangen Initiative, a global effort to strengthen export control compliance and non-proliferation awareness across research and higher education institutions.

The forum brought together government officials, regulators, researchers, and educators to explore how the academic sector can serve as a frontline partner in implementing United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004).
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A Shared Responsibility for Security and Innovation
In the joint keynote, Mr. Georg Pietsch, Director General of Germany’s Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA), and Professor V Jesudevan underscored the growing intersection between science, security, and regulation. Their message was clear: a shared responsibility approach, bridging government and academia is essential to protecting global security while safeguarding the freedom to innovate.

Key themes included:

Embedding export control principles in research governance
Raising awareness among students and faculty on dual-use risks
Building institutional frameworks for internal compliance
Fostering ethical leadership in scientific communities

A Regional Commitment to Academic Engagement
‍Participants included representatives from Singapore, Japan, Korea, Lao PDR, Cambodia, the United States, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia, and the Philippines, reflecting strong regional commitment to multilateral non-proliferation goals.

Dialogues throughout the day focused on practical strategies to:

Equip universities and research institutes with the tools to meet export control obligations
Foster partnerships between regulators and academic institutions
Encourage regional alignment in academic compliance protocols
Protect research ecosystems from unintended diversion or misuse

The event highlighted that the role of academia is not peripheral, it is central to the long-term effectiveness of strategic trade controls.

Our Contribution
‍The Centre for Trade Excellence strongly supports the integration of academia into the global non-proliferation architecture. We believe that trade security begins with awareness, and awareness begins in the classroom. By promoting regulatory literacy and compliance culture within academic communities, we help build the next generation of responsible innovators and policy thinkers.

We extend our gratitude to our partners, Singapore Customs, the German Federal Government, and the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) for co-hosting this important initiative.

Together, we are building bridges between freedom and responsibility, innovation and security.

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