SINGAPORE — APCO Worldwide has named Asia trade policy expert Dr Deborah Elms to the firm's international advisory council (IAC), at a time of heightened geopolitical tension and scrutiny of supply chains. 

Based in Singapore, Elms was the executive director of the Asian Trade Centre, an advisory firm which works with governments and companies to design better trade policies for the Asia-Pacific region. She is also a senior fellow in the in the Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry’s Trade Academy.

“Deborah has a proven track record in providing invaluable counsel on a range of trade issues to governments across Asia and the Middle East, drawing on decades of experience in international trade policy development and negotiations as well as global value chains,” said APCO Southeast Asia and Korea MD James Yi. “Her real-world knowledge and expertise, especially in Asia, will be a tremendous resource to our clients and complements our firm’s global expertise.”

APCO's IAC numbers more than 100 experts across the world, which the firm calls on for client counsel. In Southeast Asia, the group has grown to include John Lin, Dr SK Chew, Fredrik Nyberg, Aida Greenbury, Dr Maria Radyati, Ambassador Devinda R. Subasinghe, Rami Sharaf, Mike Chinoy, Yuli Ismartono, JJ Lee, Stephanie Tan, Lance Leggitt, Leslie Norwalk, Dr. Kavita Patel and Peter Urbanowicz.

“In the face of global supply chain disruption due to Covid-19 combined with ongoing trade and political uncertainty within certain Asian markets, governments and organizations are already relooking at risk, resilience, and recalibration in the global trade network," said Elms. "I look forward to working with APCO to help clients in navigating the political, economic and social complexities of APAC markets to meet their trade-related needs."

Previously, Elms also served as head of the Temasek Foundation Centre for Trade & Negotiations and senior fellow of international political economy at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.