Early life and education

Ali Apong is born on 18 August 1958, in Kampong Kuala Abang, Tutong.^[1] He graduated from University of Reading with honours degree in Economics and later earned both his postgraduate diploma in Management and Master of Business Administration from the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine.^[2]

Early career

He first began his career as an Investment Officer in the Brunei Investment Agency (BIA) in 1983, followed by a later appointment to an Assistant Managing Director on 1 September 1997.^[2] From 1999 until early 2002, he was part of a Ministry of Finance and Economy team to establish the Brunei International Financial Centre, before returning to his previous position in the BIA.^[2] In 2004, Ali Apong was appointed as a Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Economy on October 21, 2004,^[3] and later transferred to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) with the same position on 24 September 2009.^[2]

Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism

Ali Apong and Aminuddin Ihsan in the Embassy of Indonesia during the 2022 Eid Al-Fitr celebration.

Ali Apong later held the position of a Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Development on 20 May 2010.^[4] On 18 November 2010, he became the Deputy Minister in the PMO,^[5] until the reshuffling of the council on 22 October 2015, where it was then announced that he had been reappointed as the first Minister for the newly established Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism.^[6][7]

Dato Ali Apong had previously stated that sophisticated aquaculture technology employed by international businesses might increase output and encourage self-sufficiency earlier in March 2019. In the previous six years, the aquaculture industry in Brunei has reported a 440 percent rise in output, going from 302 tonnes (297 long tons; 333 short tons) ($3 million) in 2011 to 1,632 tonnes ($17 million) in 2017.^[8] By maximizing the 1,000 hectares that are currently being actively farmed in Brunei, self-sufficiency can rise to 10% in 2020, according to him. Nine rice fields in Brunei-Muara are supplied with water by the Imang Dam, which has been upgraded and expanded in capacity.^[9]

Officials in Bandar Seri Begawan began by halting the coronavirus's spread to the sultanate during the COVID-19 outbreak in Brunei. In January 2020, the ministers of education and health of Brunei, Hamzah Sulaiman, Isham Jaafar, and Ali Apong, minister of primary resources and tourism, held a news conference to announce travel restrictions from China, namely the epicenter of Hubei Province.^[10]

In order to better understand the natural ecosystem of Brunei's forests, Dato Ali Apong has urged for ongoing scientific study. The Brunei Darussalam Conference On Forest: Forests And Biodiversity: Unveiling Its Economic Potential, held in connection with the Brunei Mid-Year Conference and Exhibition (MYCE) 2021, included him as the keynote speaker yesterday. He said:^[11]

These include clearing of forest areas to make way for these activities that result in deforestation and building dams for irrigation purposes, which may cause floods resulting in net forest loss, as well as loss of wildlife. That is why in the agriculture industry, it is important for us to consider modern or vertical farming, which includes different use of land to ensure the highest yield per hectare, instead of simply using up more land that only produces low yield. Forests provide us with the air we breathe, timber that we use, food for our sustenance, medicines to cure sickness and other essentials for our well-being. Forests also support environmental stability, provides watershed protection, prevent soil erosion, mitigate climate change and are also habitats for wildlife.

The cabinet reshuffled again on 7 June 2022, his position as the Minister was succeeded by Abdul Manaf Metussin.^[12]