Global conflicts threaten regional food security, says KRI paper

The food security risks facing Malaysia and Southeast Asia should not be viewed merely as temporary consequences of geopolitical conflicts in West Asia. Instead, these challenges represent deep-seated structural issues within the region's food systems that have been developing over a considerable period.

A discussion paper released by the Khazanah Research Institute (KRI) on the geo-economics of food dependency in Malaysia and Southeast Asia underscores this point. The paper argues that the current crises, which have heightened concerns about energy supplies, logistical reliability, and access to essential inputs, are symptomatic of a larger, systemic problem.

These structural vulnerabilities mean that the region's food security is precarious. The interconnectedness of global conflicts and regional food supplies highlights the need for a more resilient and diversified approach to food production and distribution within Southeast Asia. The KRI's analysis suggests that addressing these issues requires a long-term strategy that tackles the fundamental architecture of the food system, rather than just reacting to immediate geopolitical disruptions.