ERIA and IDE-JETRO Convene Public Seminar on Strengthening Supply Chain Resilience amid Global Uncertainty

Tokyo, 19-20 February 2026: ERIA, in collaboration with the Institute of Developing Economies - Japan External Trade Organization (IDE-JETRO), co-hosted a public seminar titled 'Strengthening Supply Chain Resilience in ASEAN' at the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) Headquarters in Tokyo on 19 February 2026.

The seminar attracted more than 200 participants, primarily representatives of businesses operating in the greater Tokyo area. It presented key findings from a joint ERIA-IDE-JETRO research project examining how firms are adapting to evolving global trade dynamics and identified policy recommendations to enhance regional supply chain resilience in ASEAN and East Asia.

Opening and Keynote Remarks

The seminar opened with remarks by Fukunari Kimura, President of IDE-JETRO, who underscored the importance of understanding shifts in global trade and assessing their implications for firms operating across ASEAN and East Asia.

Welcoming remarks were delivered by Takayuki Yamanaka, Chief Operating Officer of ERIA, who highlighted that the collaboration brings together IDE-JETRO's firm-level analytical expertise and ERIA's regional policy perspective to better inform evidence-based policymaking.

Panel Discussion I: Growing Uncertainty in Supply Chains

US Tariffs, Decarbonisation, and Digitalisation

Moderated by Fukunari Kimura, the first panel examined key sources of uncertainty affecting regional supply chains, including geopolitical developments, United States tariff measures, decarbonisation requirements, and digital transformation.

• Ikumo Isono (IDE-JETRO) presented findings on the impacts of US tariffs on ASEAN economies using IDE's Geographical Simulation Model, which captures industrial dynamics within geographically dispersed production networks.
• Venkatachalam Anbumozhi (ERIA) discussed how expanding decarbonisation requirements and related compliance costs are reshaping corporate strategies and influencing supply chain resilience.
• Yasushi Ueki (Bangkok Research Center, JETRO) highlighted the transformative role of digitalisation in supply chains, focusing on how technology adoption is altering production networks and firm behaviour.

Panel Discussion II: Supply Chain Resilience Policies and Realities

Challenges Facing Firms in ASEAN and East Asia

Moderated by Isamu Wakamatsu, the second panel focused on the practical challenges faced by firms amid geopolitical shifts and recurring supply chain disruptions.

• Isamu Wakamatsu (IDE-JETRO) compared the responses of Japanese multinational firms with those in China, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan, outlining corporate strategies for managing global uncertainty.
• Dandy Rafitrandi (Centre for Strategic and International Studies Indonesia) discussed Indonesia's supply chain policies and how local firms are responding to global trade disruptions.
• Saowaruj Rattanakhamfu (Thailand Development Research Institute) presented perspectives from major Thai firms on managing risks and strengthening supply chain resilience.
• Vo Tri Thanh (Business and Competition Strategy Institute Viet Nam) highlighted Viet Nam's economic outlook, emphasising the role of foreign direct investment in sustaining growth and firm-level preparedness amid global uncertainty.

The discussions underscored the importance of coordinated regional strategies to ensure ASEAN's supply chains remain resilient in the face of trade protectionism, increasingly stringent decarbonisation targets, and accelerated digitalisation.

Workshop on Enhancing Supply Chain Resilience in ASEAN

As a back-to-back event, a closed-door Workshop on Enhancing Supply Chain Resilience in ASEAN was held on 20 February 2026 at IDE-JETRO. The workshop provided a platform for project members to present country-level findings and refine policy recommendations.

Opening remarks were delivered by Fukunari Kimura, who emphasised the importance of rigorous analysis of international production networks to inform policies that strengthen ASEAN's supply chain resilience. Representing ERIA, Venkatachalam Anbumozhi outlined the project's expected outputs, including academic publications, discussion papers, and policy briefs aimed at supporting ASEAN policymakers and stakeholders.

Country-level findings were presented by Dandy Rafitrandi (Indonesia), Saowaruj Rattanakhamfu (Thailand), and Vo Tri Thanh (Viet Nam), highlighting firm responses to shifting trade policies, geopolitical risks, decarbonisation pressures, and digitalisation trends, alongside preliminary policy recommendations to enhance long-term competitiveness.

IDE-JETRO researchers Ikumo Isono, Yasushi Ueki, Isamu Wakamatsu, Mai Fujita, Shozo Sakata, and So Umezaki served as discussants, providing analytical feedback, methodological insights, and comparative regional perspectives that helped strengthen the empirical analysis and policy framing of the forthcoming publications.

The seminar and workshop reaffirmed ERIA's and IDE-JETRO's shared commitment to advancing evidence-based research to support more resilient, sustainable, and competitive supply chains in ASEAN and East Asia amid continued global uncertainty.