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Genevieve Donnellon-May
Genevieve Donnellon-May is a geopolitical and global strategy adviser interested in regional resource conflict and environmental governance in Asia and Africa. She is a researcher at Oxford Global Society, the Asia-Pacific analyst for The Red Line podcast, a 2023 Pacific Forum Young Leader, and a 2023 Yenching Global Symposium delegate.
Policymakers in Beijing have taken steps to address supply chain vulnerabilities and the weaponisation of imported food supplies.
Despite growing scrutiny of its international climate finance contributions, Beijing’s domestic policies could help set standards in the Global South.
The country is facing food security challenges as a result of factors ranging from changing diets and climate threats to supply chain uncertainties.
While China has prioritised climate adaptation, inadequate investment, fragmented policies and poor coordination between municipalities risk holding back progress.
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The challenges facing East and Southeast Asian nations’ food security efforts require looking farther south for lasting solutions.
China’s EV supply-chain investments in the region come with environmental and social challenges – which sustainable miner Australia can help solve.
From Brazil and Colombia to Indonesia and Vietnam, crops over the last decade have been hit by adverse weather and disease. Supply is increasingly unstable and shrinking, even as land suitable for cultivation disappears
Two-way agricultural trade between China and Southeast Asian nations can help address food security concerns on both sides, strengthen productivity and pose a fresh challenge to the traditional dominance of US and Australian exports.
It would boost Russia’s influence as a vital grain supplier, provide greater food security for Brics states and potentially change the dynamics of the global agricultural market, hitting Western exporters from the US to Australia.
After decades of delays over logistical and geopolitical disagreements, a rail link between China, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan is set to begin construction. With Russia no longer objecting to it, the way is clear for a project that will boost Beijing’s economic ties and diplomatic influence within Central Asia.
By using the grain corridor with Russia to further diversify supply routes, China can reduce its reliance on global chokepoints amid increasing pressure on them while also ensuring a more secure food supply chain. However, challenges remain.
Middle and small powers in the developing world are increasingly seeking alliances to secure their interests amid a backdrop of great power competition. New members could stand to gain handsomely from balancing or playing BRICS and the West off each other, but hurdles must be cleared before expansion can happen.
Massive dam-building projects aimed at strengthening China’s water supply are a major concern for neighbouring countries. As a regional leader and ‘upstream superpower’, it is up to Beijing to establish fair and sustainable mechanisms for cross-border water sharing.
