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Past Meetings
This page provides meeting information and materials from past Asian Bioethics Network meetings.
Last updated 22 September 2025
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2023 ABN Meeting
Second Asian Bioethics Network Meeting held on 4 Sep 2023
Summary of Second Meeting
The second Asian Bioethics Network (ABN) meeting was held on 4 Sep 2023 with the theme "Emerging Ethical Challenges of Healthcare Digitalisation".
The ABN meeting was chaired by Emeritus Professor Lee Eng Hin, Chair of the Bioethics Advisory Committee (BAC) and Emeritus Professor Roy Joseph, Chair of the National Medical Ethics Committee (NMEC).
The ABN has expanded considerably from eight member states in June 2021 and currently comprises 14 members from Asia, Australia and New Zealand. This indicates strong support and interest from our regional counterparts in exchanging bioethics experiences and furthering capabilities.
Representatives from different Asian countries were invited to share on their national bioethics committees' work, major achievements, and bioethics initiatives in their countries. They also shared on the state of healthcare digitalisation in their countries as well as the emerging technologies, benefits, ethical challenges faced and the plans/recommendations to address the challenges.
The meeting also featured two keynote presentations by Associate Professor Ngiam Kee Yuan, Group Chief Technology Officer, National University Health System and Professor Julian Savulescu, Director, Centre for Biomedical Ethics, and Chen Su Lan Centennial Professor in Medical Ethics, National University of Singapore.
Representatives from ABN member states
S/N | Country | Name | Designation and Institution |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Australia | Ms Cathy Schapper | Acting Director, Ethics and Integrity section, National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) |
2 | Australia | Dr Jeremy Kenner | Expert Advisor - Ethics, NHMRC |
3 | Brunei | Dr Alice Yong | ex-Chair, Medical and Health Research and Ethics Committee, Ministry of Health |
4 | Korea | Associate Professor Ilhak Lee | Associate Professor in Medical Ethics, Department of Medical Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Medicine, Yonsei University |
5 | Korea | Dr Eunyoung Lee | Senior Researcher (Team Leader), Department of Policy & Research, Team of Policy Development, Korea National Institute for Bioethics Policy (KoNIBP) |
6 | Korea | Ms Geyhyoung Joh | Administrative Staff, Department of Policy & Research, Team of Policy Development, KoNIBP |
7 | Myanmar | Professor Zaw Than Htun | Director-General, Department of Medical Research (DMR); and Vice-chairperson, Institutional Review Board |
8 | Myanmar | Dr Theingi Thwin | Director, Research (Ret.), DMR; and Member, DMR Ethical Institutional Review Board |
9 | Nepal | Ms Namita Ghimire | Chief, Ethical Review of the Monitoring and Evaluation Section, Nepal Health Research Council |
10 | New Zealand | Professor John McMillan | Chair, National Ethics Advisory Committee (NEAC); and Professor, Bioethics Centre, University of Otago |
11 | New Zealand | Mr Shannon Hanrahan | Deputy Chair, NEAC |
12 | New Zealand | Ms Elizabeth Bohm | Principal Advisor, NEAC |
13 | New Zealand | Ms Nicola Liebergreen | Senior Advisor, NEAC |
14 | Philippines | Attorney Charade B. Mercado-Grande | Assistant Secretary of Health, Health Facility and Patient Support Team, Department of Health; and Chairperson, Bioethics Advisory Board |
15 | Philippines | Ms Kathleen Grace M. Lentija | Nurse IV, Health Facilities and Services Regulatory Bureau, Department of Health |
16 | Thailand | Emeritus Professor Yongyuth Yuthavong | Emeritus Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science , Mahidol University |
17 | Thailand | Professor Prasit Palittapongarnpim | Professor, Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Mahidol University |
18 | Thailand | Ms Thitiwan Kerdsomboon | Division Director, The Office of Research Integrity Division (ORI), National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) |
19 | Thailand | Dr Rattanapan Phoomirat | Senior Project Analyst, ORI, NSTDA |
20 | Thailand | Ms Rujikorn Sabsompong | Project Analyst, ORI, NSTDA |
Click here for the presentation slides and meeting report.
2021 ABN Meeting
First Asian Bioethics Network Meeting held on 10 June 2021
Summary of Inaugural Meeting
The first Asian Bioethics Network (ABN) meeting was held on 10 June 2021 in conjunction with BAC's 20th Anniversary Event, which also comprised a virtual public conference held on 17 and 18 June 2021.
The ABN meeting was chaired by Mr Charles Lim, BAC member and Singapore's representative to UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Bioethics Committee (IGBC) for the 2018-2021 term.
At the meeting, the BAC shared its proposal to establish the Asian Bioethics Network, and also invited representatives from different Asian countries to share their national bioethics committees' work, achievements, latest developments, as well as emerging bioethical issues in their countries.
The attendees agreed to the BAC's proposal to establish the Asian Bioethics Network as it would facilitate the sharing of resources, enable knowledge exchange and help foster regional networks. This would mutually benefit all network members by allowing the various committees to be kept abreast of the latest international developments in bioethics, and ensure that their recommendations were developed in tandem with international best practices. With continued relationship-building, the network members would also be better able to converge on ethical positions and represent the Asian perspective at international platforms.
Representatives from ABN member states
S/N | Country | Name | Professional Designation |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Australia | Ms Prue Torrance | Executive Director, Research Quality and Priorities Branch, National Health and Medical Research Council |
2 | Australia | Dr Jeremy Kenner | Expert Advisor Ethics, National Health and Medical Research Council |
3 | Bhutan | Dr Neyzang Wangmo | Chairperson, Research Ethics Board of Health, Ministry of Health, Bhutan; and Director, Medical Education Centre for Research, Innovation and Training |
4 | Myanmar | Dr Theingi Thwin | Director, Research (Ret.), Department of Medical Research (DMR); and Member, DMR Ethical Institutional Review Board |
5 | Nepal | Professor Dr Prakash Ghimire | Chairperson, Ethical Review Board, Nepal Health Research Council, Nepal; Ethics Consultant, WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific; and Professor, Central Department of Microbiology (Institute of Science and Technology), Tribhuvan University |
6 | Nepal | Ms Namita Ghimire | Research Officer, Ethical Review Board, Nepal Health Research Council, Nepal |
7 | New Zealand | Associate Professor Neil Pickering | Chair, National Ethics Advisory Committee; and Associate Professor, Bioethics Centre, University of Otago |
8 | New Zealand | Mr Nic Aagard | Acting Manager, Secretariat of the National Ethics Advisory Committee, Ministry of Health, New Zealand |
9 | Sri Lanka | Professor Anoja Indrakanthi Fernando | Emeritus Professor, Pharmacology, University of Ruhuna Vice Chair and Rapporteur, UNESCO International Bioethics Committee (IBC) |
10 | Vietnam | Associate Professor Le Thi Thu Hien | Deputy Director, Institute of Genome Research, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology; and Associate Editor, Vietnam Journal of Biotechnology |