Report of Conference on Digital Strategies for the AI Era in Asian Countries

Date

January 29, 2026, 13:00 – 17:30

Place

Zoom Webinar

Report

Center of the International Cooperation for Computerization (CICC) invited keypersons in digital strategies from IT related government agencies in 10 Asian countries such as Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam as speakers and held a conference titled “Digital Strategies for the AI Era Digital Strategies in Asian Countries”. It was held with the support of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan (METI), the ASEAN-Japan Centre and the Institute of Digital Government of Waseda University, and was subsidized by JKA through its promotion funds from KEIRIN RACE.

The conference opened with opening remarks by Koichiro Urabe, President of CICC, followed by a keynote speech titled “Overview of Japan’s AI Policy” by Mr. Hibiki Tsuruoka, Deputy Director, AI Industry Strategy Office, METI. Speakers from 10 Asian countries presented on “Digital Strategies for the AI Era in Asian Countries”, introducing policies and related projects for the digitalization of society and the economy, as well as their approaches to AI. We were able to conduct meaningful information sharing and exchange opinions regarding the current situations and initiatives in each country. We were able to gain an understanding of the digitalization status in each country, provide information on Japan's digital policies, and strengthen our human networks.

We apologize for any inconvenience caused to speakers and viewers by the network outage during the latter part of the conference.

Please refer to the following for the program and presentation materials.
Presentation materials can be viewed by clicking on the title or country name.

Agenda:

13:00 - 13:30
Opening Address
Mr. Koichiro Urabe
President
Center of the International Cooperation for Computerization (CICC)

Keynote Speech on Outline of Japan’s AI Policy
Mr. Hibiki Tsuruoka
Deputy Director
AI Industry Strategy Office
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan (METI)

13:30 - 17:20”
“Digital Strategies for the AI Era in Asian Countries”
1. Cambodia
Dr. En Sovann
Director of Department of Digital Government Transformation
Digital Government Committee
Ministry of Post and Telecommunications (MPT)

2. Lao P.D.R.
Ms. Vannapha Phommathansy
Deputy Director General
Digital Government Center
Ministry of Technology and Communications (MTC)

3. Malaysia
Ms. Surayati binti Ibrahim
Undersecretary, Policy, Strategic and Compliance Division
Ministry of Digital

4. Myamar
Dr. Myo Myo Naing
Central Executive Committee Member
Myanmar Computer Federation (MCF)
Secretary of Myanmar Computer Professionals Association (MCPA)

5. Nepal
Mr. Pabitra Dangol
Director (Information Technology)
Department of Information Technology
Ministry of Communications and Information Technology

6. Pakistan
Mr. Saad Zafar Sadiq
Director – Multilateral Organisations, International Coordination
Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications (MoITT)

7. Singapore
Mr. Benjamin Chua
Senior Manager
AI Governance and Safety
Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA)

8. Sri Lanka
Mr. Sanjaya Karunasena
Executive Director and Acting CEO
GovTech Sri Lanka

9. Thailand
Ms. Autsanee Suwannarat
Director of the Policy and Strategy Group
Strategy and Planning Division
Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (MDES)

10. Vietnam
Mr. Duong Xuan Hiep
Official of Digital Service Division
National Authority of Digital Transformation
Ministry of Science and Technology (MST)

17:20 - 17:30
Closing Address
Mr. Jun Nakaya
Chairman of Steering Committee
Center of the International Cooperation for Computerization (CICC)

This conference is subsidized by JKA through its promotion funds from KEIRIN RACE