At the same time, companies were shifting from just-in-time to just-in-case supply chain management systems. Similarly, the European Investment Bank’s Investment Survey 9 found that half of US companies and one-third of EU ones have reacted to the recent trade disruptions by focusing more on the domestic market. Meanwhile, the McKinsey survey of supply chain leaders worldwide10 found that, last year, 81% of firms adopted dual-sourcing strategies for raw materials (up from 55% in 2021). In other words, the response seems to be moving more in the direction of increased diversification – in terms of suppliers and final demand, and both internally and externally rather than reshoring, at least for the time being. This diversification may, in fact, generate greater macroeconomic stability and less volatility. Second, and linked to the above, countries (including China and the United States) have started to prioritise safety over efficiency. 8  Lagarde, C. (2022). “A new glo bal map: Euro pean resilience in a changing wo rld”. Keyno te speech at the Peterson Institute fo r Internatio nal Eco nomics, April. 9  Euro pean Investment Bank Investment Survey, 2022. 10  Alicke, K., E. Barriball, T. Fo ster, J. Mauho urat and V. Trautwein (2022). Taking the puls e of s hifting s upply chains. McKinsey. 4  A case in point is the “friend-shoring” concept as a strategic objective in the United States, while Europe aims to double its share of global semiconductor production to 20% by 2030. Companies are also reacting.

These include the issuance of several guidance documents such as VBI implementation guide, VBI Scorecard and Value-based Impact Assessment Framework (VBIAF). More recently, the Bank and the VBI community of practitioners (COP) have embarked on efforts to develop sector-specific guide on value-based impact assessment alongside sectoral experts. As a start, the focus is on renewable energy, efficient energy and primary commodity (palm oil). As the industry began to operationalise the VBI, the market has observed efforts to infuse key elements of VBI in the offerings and practices. These include the launch of the first working capital financing for women entrepreneurs this year. This collateral-free facility embeds financial literacy sessions and focus group discussions to help entrepreneurs in managing and growing their businesses more efficiently. Other examples include the launch of an Islamic Index-based investment scheme embedding with environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles, as well as a financing programme via matching fund platform between financial institution and public contributions, which aims to empower communities through entrepreneurship. The takaful industry is also taking steps to implement VBI. The industry has formed a VBI Takaful Task Force to formulate the strategic roadmap for the takaful industry. Several takaful operators, on their own, have also undertaken a comprehensive review of business strategies. This review has begun to shape changes in the corporate value intent and strategic direction of these takaful operators to be more aligned with VBI. Additionally, some of these takaful operators are beginning to formulate more value-based protection solutions.