On 6 February 2024, five NESA Center faculty members held a seminar discussion at NESA Center offices in Washington, D.C., with two faculty members and twelve students from the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) regarding current and emergent policy issues in South Asia and the Indian Ocean littoral.

Adjunct Professor John (Jack) Gill opened the seminar and led the discussion. The discussions included a NESA Center overview presented by Professor Richard Wiersema, followed by focused presentations by NESA Center experts Distinguished Professor Ali Jalali on developments in Afghanistan, Distinguished Professor Dr. Hassan Abbas on political futures in Pakistan, and Assistant Professor Jeffrey Payne on challenges in cybersecurity policy for regional governments. The NESA Center team then engaged in a lively question-and-answer session with the IIPA participants.

From the left: Professor Richard Wiersema (standing/speaking); Professor Jack Gill (seated at the front speaker table); Professor Jeffrey Payne (seated at front end of side table); Professor Ali Jalali (seated at side table next to Professor Payne).

The scheduled roundtable was part of the IIPA delegation’s week-long series of visits to U.S. think tanks and government institutions. The IIPA group expressed great interest in having NESA Center faculty visit their establishment in New Delhi during future trips to India.

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