The conference was organised by the India Foundation in association with S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies and Ministry of Foreign Affairs Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam.
It provided a forum to bring speakers and delegates from a large number of Indian Ocean rim States and other concerned nations together to discuss ‘Building Governance Architectures’ in the Indo-Pacific region. The event focused on existing sub-regional bodies and their capability as forums for the governance of the region in a rules based order with a specific view on, inter alia, security and governance architecture as well as trade and tranquility.
28 ministers and officials as well as representatives from 43 countries were hosted at the event. They elaborated on enhanced cooperation and governance architectures in the Indo-Pacific region. Key speakers at the conference included HE Ranil Wickremesinghe, the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka; HE Pham Binh Minh, the Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam; HE Upendra Yadav, Deputy Prime Minister of Nepal; HE Smt Sushma Swaraj, External Affairs Minister of India; and HE Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Singapore.