Panel I: Strategic Hedging and Economic Diversification – How Small States Can Thrive in an Era of Trade Fragmentation

Panel I of the Multilateral Trade Forum (MTF) 2026, titled “Strategic Hedging and Economic Diversification – How Small States Can Thrive in an Era of Trade Fragmentation,” was moderated by H.E. Dr. Chheang Vannarith, Deputy Secretary-General and Chairman of the National Assembly’s Advisory Council. He was attended by a distinguished group of panelists, including Prof. Dr. Shandre Mugan Thangavelu, President of the Jeffrey Cheah Institute for Southeast Asia; Dr. Bradley Jenson Murg, Provost and Vice-Rector of Paragon International University; Mr. Julian Clarke, Senior Regional Integration and Cooperation Specialist at ADB; Ms. Iv Ek Nimnuon, Assistant Resident Representative of UNDP Cambodia; and Mr. Casey Barnett, President of CamEd Business School.