Mochammad Firman Hidayat is a Member of the National Economic Council and the Executive Director for Priority Program Acceleration of the Republic of Indonesia. With over 15 years of experience in economic policy and development planning, he has played a pivotal role in advancing Indonesia’s national priorities, particularly in the maritime and macroeconomic sectors.
He served as Deputy Coordinating Minister for Maritime Resources at the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment until the conclusion of the 2019–2024 Kabinet Indonesia Maju term. Prior to that, he joined the Ministry in July 2021 as Special Staff to the Coordinating Minister during the peak of the COVID-19 Delta variant wave. In this role, he was part of the core team that designed a nationwide policy known as PPKM, which restricted community activities to curb the spread of COVID-19, particularly in the Java-Bali region. He also provided macroeconomic analysis and policy briefings to support crisis response and recovery strategies. As Deputy Minister, Firman led strategic initiatives on sustainable fisheries management, seaweed industrialization, and regional cooperation for responsible marine resource governance. He has consistently advocated for conservation-based maritime policies, emphasizing ecosystem resilience, inclusive development, and long-term ocean sustainability.
Before his work in maritime affairs, Firman built his career at the Ministry of National Development Planning (Bappenas), where he was responsible for designing Indonesia’s national macroeconomic framework. His work included forecasting, economic modeling, and integrating development priorities into long-term planning documents. He was also involved in research and policy coordination for inclusive economic growth. Firman began his professional journey as an assistant to the late Dr. Syahrir, the economic advisor to the President of Indonesia during the Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono administration. This early experience shaped his approach to high-level policy analysis and strategic economic planning.
He earned his BA in Economics from the University of Indonesia and completed his Master’s degree at Vanderbilt University’s Graduate Program in Economic Development (GPED), where he received the James S. and Rosemary Worley Award for academic excellence. Firman continues to promote ocean sustainability through inclusive, evidence-based policy and regional collaboration aligned with SDG 14.
Prof. Mohammed Sheikh received a Ph.D (Marine Sciences) from the National University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa Japan between 2005 and 2008. He was awarded a Post Doc by the Japan Society for Promotion of Science (JSPS) from 2008-2010. He was a senior research fellow under the CV Raman program at University of Bangalore, India (2012).
He is also an alumnus of Harvard Kennedy Governance School alumnus of Innovation for economic development training (2014) and scientific translation to policy issues (2019) from Harvard University (USA) and the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), Brighton UK, respectively.
Sheikh is currently a Director of Fisheries of the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries of the United Republic of Tanzania. He also served as a Director of Research (Physical Sciences) at the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) from 2017-2020. Sheikh is a Professor of Marine/aquatic ecosystem health and Ecotoxicology. Much of his work has been on analyzing toxicological effects of hazardous chemicals in marine and aquatic ecosystems. He has given numerous invited talks in the topic of marine pollution and eco-toxicology. Prof Sheikh has been working with renowned research groups from Denmark, Japan, Germany, Belgium, Malaysia, UK etc.
Prof. Sheikh is an author or co-author of over 50 refereed scientific papers appeared in reputable journals such as Marine Pollution Bulletin, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, International journal of environmental Analytical chemistry, Regional studies in Marine Science Journal and Remote sensing to mention a few. He served as a team leader or an active team player of various multinational funded research projects such as BSU (DANIDA), HDIF (DFID), VLIR-UOS South Initiative among selected projects.
Susannah works to improve governance in the transition mineral supply chain, with a particular focus on preventing corruption, as part of NRGI’s work to accelerate a just energy transition. She conducts research on issues such as licensing and contracting corruption, corruption’s intersection with broader socioenvironmental harms, and mining sector standards and certification schemes. Prior to joining NRGI, she worked for Transparency International UK and the UK Anti-Corruption Coalition.
Susannah has a master’s in international relations from King’s College London and a master’s (honours) in history and politics from the University of Glasgow.
Dr. Stephen Fletcher is Resource Person For The Inter-Agency Group Of Development Organisation (IAGDO) in Grenada. He is also Grenada’s former Ambassador to the EU and Permanent Representative to UN Agencies based in Europe, including the UNCTAD. Dr. Fletcher is a friend, ally, and lead Partner at Campeche International Consultants based in Grenada.
He is a Caribbean Man, born in Grenada. He has been a persistent student of the history of trade for decades. His Masters Thesis focused on the Impact of the EU Single Market on Caribbean Traditional Trade. His PhD was on commodity strategic partnerships or International Commodity Agreements (ICA), and in particular the failed attempt by Grenada Co-operative Nutmeg Association (GCNA) and The Association of Indonesian Nutmeg Exporters (ASPIN).
Ms. Lili Flour is a consultant managing the TrainForTrade Port Management Programme as part of the Trade Logistics Branch at UNCTAD.
She is a maritime specialist with over a decade of experience working at sea aboard private and charter vessels before joining the UN in Geneva.
She holds a BSc in International Business from the College of Charleston, MA in International Relations from the Geneva School of Diplomacy and MBA from Anglia Ruskin University. She also holds IMO certification STCW and a UK Seaman’s Discharge Book.
Monica Foerster is the Chair of IFAC's SMP Advisory Group and a member of IFAC´s PPRAG. She is a partner at Confidor, a member of the Board of Ibracon (previously SMP Director and coordinator of the SMPWG), and a Board Member at the Brazilian Federal Accounting Council (CFC).
She has an MBA in financial management, controllership and audit from FGV, and a degree in accounting from UFRGS, Brazil.
Ana Catarina Fonseca is a legal expert with a strong background in consumer law and international cooperation. Former Director-General for Consumer Affairs in Portugal, representing the country at the European Commission, OECD, G20, and United Nations. Currently collaborates with Camões – Institute for Cooperation and Language, supporting the negotiation and conclusion of international cooperation instruments, and works as a consultant to the United Nations on consumer protection