Blog

For the past few years, internet giants such as America’s Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn, Japan’s Rakuten, and South Korea’s Naver have been facing an increasingly turbulent operating environment in the Asia-Pacific Region (APR). Many of the challenges they face are widely known.

The Asia-Pacific Region (APR) is experiencing a surge of connectivity initiatives. China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is now accompanied by the Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP). There is also the upcoming Asia-Africa Growth Corridor being promoted by Japan and India.

The latest Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) Statistical Survey on Japanese overseas subsidiaries published on September 26 revealed their sales, facility and equipment investment, and employment all achieved significantly high growth.

In the 1970s, Tokyo adopted a conscious strategy to encourage outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) by Japanese firms as a way to mitigate the poisonous pollution flowing from Japan’s economic miracle.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and upcoming regional connectivity plans like the Asia-Africa Growth Corridor (AAGC) should stimulate foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in countries getting connected and developing new industrial and other capacities. These investments, among other factors, would be driven by local and national capacities to do business across cyberspace. Discussions on connectivity often overlook this vital element as they focus on land and sea links.