The 4^th ERIA Academic Advisory Council (AAC) Meeting was held on 8 May 2012 at ERIA Annex Office to discuss the future direction of ERIA's activities in FY2012. 6 AAC members, ERIA officials, and ERIA researchers attended the meeting.

As a part of ASEAN Roadshow, ERIA and IDE-JETRO organized FTA Symposium on “Toward Economic Integration in ASEAN and East Asia” on 27 April 2012 in Tokyo, Japan. Around 250 participants including ASEAN Economic Ministers, government officials, and experts attended the Symposium.

ERIA Sendai Symposium on “Towards a Disaster Resilient Economy in East Asia” was held on 26 April 2012 in Sendai, Japan. In the context of the ASEAN Roadshow, ERIA organized this symposium in cooperation with Miyagi Prefecture, and Sendai City and with the support of IDE-JETRO.

The ASEAN Roadshow to Japan took place from 25 to 28 April 2012 in Sendai and Tokyo, Japan. The Roadshow was organized by the ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM), the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) of Japan and the Secretary-General of ASEAN, with the support of the AEM-METI Economic and Industrial Cooperation Committee (AMEICC), the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), business organizations, government-affiliated organizations and local governments.

From 25-28 April 2012, the Economic Ministers from ASEAN countries and the Secretary-General of ASEAN will visit Sendai and Tokyo, Japan, to participate in the ASEAN Road Show. During the Road Show, the Ministers will hold dialogues with politicians, bureaucrats and business leaders, participate in Symposia, tour Japanese companies and factories, and visit the sites affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake. The ASEAN Road Show aims at building strategic economic partnerships between Japan and ASEAN countries in public and private sectors and enhancing and promoting trade and investment in East Asia region. 

The Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) announced to establish a new unit (‘Energy Unit’), which will work towards strengthening cooperation in energy sector activities, with the objective to enhance energy security in the region.  

The Japan Section of the ASEAN-Japan Business Council held the conference with ambassadors from ASEAN countries in Tokyo on 11 April 2012.

H.E. Dr. Lim Hong Hin, former ERIA economist was appointed as the new Deputy Secretary-General (DSG) for ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) for the period of 2012 to 2015 at the ASEAN Secretariat. The oath-taking ceremony was witnessed by the Secretary-General of ASEAN Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, all Deputy Secretaries-General of ASEAN, and officers of the ASEAN Secretariat.

The “CEEP-BIT and ERIA Joint Workshop on Energy & Environmental Modeling for Policy Development” was hosted by Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research, Beijing Institute of Technology (CEEP-BIT) and co-organized by the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) on 27 March 2012 at Friendship Hotel in Beijing, China.