The 14th BIPC conference featured a dedicated session hosted by IAPH and the Asian Development Bank, which saw the presentation of the Asian version of the IAPH World Ports Tracker 2026 report, based on a survey held among IAPH members at the beginning of this year. The Asian report was produced as a result of an MoU that IAPH and ADB signed during last year’s World Ports Conference in Kobe. The results of the Asian report were presented by one of the authors of the report, Professor Theo Notteboom (University of Antwerp), who joined the session online. Theo noted that Asia remains the world’s most connected maritime region – strengthened overall, but with disparities between leading and lagging economies widening – and that connectivity and disparities were especially critical for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and smaller economies. In some ADB regions, countries were at risk of being left ‘behind the curve’ on environmental management, risk preparedness, and decarbonisation. A presentation from Weimin Ren, director (transport division) at UNESCAP highlighted resilience as an increasing priority in regional transport connectivity. The presentations were followed by a panel discussion, moderated by IAPH managing director Patrick Verhoeven, with Yesim Elhan-Kayalar, advisor at the Asian Development Bank, IAPH vice-president Ichio Motono (senior executive director, Yokohama Port Corporation), Jarim Koo (vice-president global business, Busan Port Authority) and Hoe Soon Tan (assistant chief executive, Maritime & Port Authority Singapore).
