Jakarta, 3 February 2026: The Indonesia Economic Summit (IES) 2026, held in Jakarta, convened international and regional business leaders, policymakers, and stakeholders to discuss Indonesia’s economic development amid shifting global geoeconomic dynamics. Discussions addressed key global challenges, ASEAN’s economic positioning, and strategic responses to emerging risks.

ERIA President Tetsuya Watanabe participated in the plenary session titled ’The Trends Shaping ASEAN Economic Evolution and Its Global Positioning.’ The session featured Atty. Marjorie O. Ramos-Samaniego, Governor of the Board of Investment (BOI) of the Philippines; Mr Mark Lee, Vice Chairman of the Singapore Business Federation (SBF); Mr Chartsiri Sophonpanich, President of Bangkok Bank; and Mr Tengku Zafrul Aziz, Chairman of the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA). The discussion was moderated by Tan Sri Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria, former Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat (2019–2024).

In his remarks, President Watanabe highlighted Indonesia’s strategic importance to the region, noting that, ’Given Indonesia’s economic scale, industrial potential, and its large and youthful middle-class population, Indonesia’s policy choices could shape the region’s overall trajectory.’ He underscored the importance of deeper regional integration and co-operation to sustain openness while strengthening ASEAN’s resilience and strategic autonomy. He concluded by stressing that success would depend on key enablers, including domestic policy co-ordination, regional co-operation, and continued policy reform and modernisation, which he described as essential to translating ASEAN’s vision into reality.

In addition to the plenary session, ERIA co-hosted a thematic roundtable discussion on ’Positioning Indonesia in ASEAN’s Geoeconomic Future, ’ moderated by Professor Nobuhiro Aizawa, Dean and Managing Director of the ERIA School of Government.

At the roundtable, President Watanabe emphasised that ASEAN integration must move beyond market integration toward the development of stronger regional capabilities, particularly in technology, human capital, and coordinated industrial development. He reiterated Indonesia’s pivotal role in anchoring ASEAN’s long-term economic resilience and competitiveness.

The summit reaffirmed ERIA’s commitment to supporting policy dialogue and regional co-operation as ASEAN navigates an increasingly complex and evolving geoeconomic landscape.