Latest news with #StrategicPlan2026-2030
New Straits Times
28-05-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
AEC's digital economy to hit US$1 trillion by 2030: strategic plan unveiled
KUALA LUMPUR: The impact of enhancing the digital economy via the Asean Economic Community (AEC) Strategic Plan 2026-2030 will be immense because the region's digital economy is projected to reach US$1 trillion by 2030, an economist said. KSI Strategic Institute for Asia Pacific economic advisor Dr Anthony Dass said this will be a key priority, and the newly binding Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) plays a significant role in increasing regional economic integration. "The digital economy contributes by facilitating cross-border trade, promoting innovation, enhancing connectivity and attracting investments into the region. A robust digital infrastructure fosters innovation, leading to new digital services, platforms, and business models that drive economic growth. "DEFA aims to address cross-border challenges and tackle issues like online fraud and misinformation, ensuring a safer and more trustworthy digital environment. Digitalisation will also streamline business processes, enhance productivity, and reduce operational costs across various sectors," he told Bernama. Nevertheless, Dass said significant differences in development levels, regulatory capacity, infrastructure, and digital skills across Asean member states pose challenges to the effective implementation and widespread benefits of DEFA. "Ensuring data free flow with trust while balancing data protection and national sovereignty is also a complex task," he said. Increase Asean economic resilience The potential of the AEC Strategic Plan to enhance regional economic integration is significant, given the lessons learned from the AEC Blueprint 2025, with its 97 per cent implementation rate. "The new plan is designed to be more dynamic and adaptable, moving beyond a 'business-as-usual' approach. By focusing on action-oriented, sustainable, dynamic, adaptable, agile, and inclusive strategies, the plan aims to create a more integrated and cohesive economy. "The emphasis on sustained growth and competitiveness, and the commitment to deeper integration through digitalisation, innovation, and sustainability, suggest a strong foundation for future progress," he said. He said the plan's effectiveness and potential impact will largely depend on the political will and implementation, and its adaptability to global shifts. Dass said its outline of six strategic goals, 44 objectives, and 192 strategic measures demonstrates a comprehensive and detailed approach to advancing regional growth. "While the plan is robust on paper, consistent political will and effective implementation across all member states are paramount. Past experiences show that disparities in development levels and regulatory capacities can hinder progress. "The current global economic landscape is characterised by rapid technological advancements, supply chain disruptions, and evolving trade dynamics. The plan's emphasis on 'agile and forward-looking strategies' suggests an awareness of this, but its actual ability to adapt to unforeseen challenges will be critical," he said. While the upgraded Asean Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) is crucial for reducing trade barriers, he said the plan's effectiveness hinges on its ability to tackle persistent non-tariff barriers, particularly in critical services like finance and banking. "Additionally, the plan's development involved extensive engagement with various stakeholders. Continued engagement with governments, the private sector, civil society, and regional organisations will be vital for its successful implementation and to ensure that the benefits are widely distributed," said Dass. Shorter timeframe The AEC Strategic Plan, with its shorter timeframe of between 2026 and 2030, presents both opportunities and challenges. It allows the plan to quickly adapt to evolving global and regional dynamics. Hence, more responsive to emerging challenges and opportunities. "A five-year horizon can lead to concentrated efforts and a greater sense of urgency in achieving targets. Shorter cycles would allow for more frequent reviews and adjustments, ensuring the plan remains relevant and impactful," Dass said. Nevertheless, it is "highly ambitious" trying to achieve significant structural reforms and deep integration within a shorter period, given the diverse development levels among member states, he said. "Some initiatives, particularly those related to capacity building or institutional strengthening, may require a longer period to show their full impact. Maintaining consistent coordination and momentum across 10 diverse economies within a compressed timeline can be demanding. "Therefore, the effectiveness will ultimately depend on whether the shorter timeframe is utilised to foster greater dynamism and responsiveness, or if it leads to an overburdened agenda that struggles with comprehensive implementation," he said Strengthening MSME Participation The AEC Strategic Plan recognises Asean MSMEs as engines of growth and aims to strengthen their participation via various initiatives such as capacity building and digital readiness, access to finance and export markets and many more. "The plan likely includes measures to improve MSMEs' access to financing and connect them with regional and global export markets, overcoming existing limitations. "Addressing structural differences, inconsistent policies, and the absence of harmonised cross-border regulations that currently constrain MSME growth is crucial," he said, adding that financial assistance and awareness programmes are needed. The plan also focuses on promoting inclusivity among MSMEs to empower youth and women entrepreneurs, ensuring that the benefits of integration are shared widely. "Asean MSMEs will benefit from this plan because it increases competitiveness, expands market access, and promotes greater resilience, by displaying a diversification of markets and stronger support networks to help the MSMEs," said Dass. Measuring the progress Dass said Asean measures the progress of its strategic plans via a combination of mechanisms, drawing lessons from previous blueprints like the AEC Blueprint 2025, which include key performance indicators (KPIs). "The bloc assesses progress, its overall effectiveness, identifies challenges, and draws lessons from it at the end of a plan's cycle," he said. Asean will also conduct council meetings and other ministerial meetings to serve as platforms to review progress, discuss implementation issues, and provide guidance, he said. "These mechanisms ensure accountability, identify bottlenecks, and enable necessary adjustments to achieve its economic integration goals," he added. The leaders of the 10-member grouping recently adopted the AEC Strategic Plan to elevate the bloc's position as the world's fourth-largest economy. The plan will move to the implementation phase with each AEC sector developing its sectoral plans, translating strategic objectives into concrete actions, timelines and performance indicators. Investment, Trade, and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said the plan is a comprehensive roadmap that will be part of the overall Asean Community Vision 2045 (ACV 2045).
The Star
27-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
AEC strategic plan set to drive deeper regional economic integration, strengthen resilience, says economist
KUALA LUMPUR: The Asean Economic Community (AEC) Strategic Plan 2026-2030 is set to drive deeper integration and create prosperity across Southeast Asian economies while strengthening the bloc's resilience against external economic pressures, an economist said on Tuesday (May 27). University of Nottingham Malaysia assistant professor of business economics Dr Tan Chee Meng emphasised that Asean's vast growth potential and rising development levels could support less affluent member states such as Cambodia and Laos in achieving economic progress. "From that perspective, it is highly plausible that the regional bloc can achieve its status as one of the largest economies in the world," he said, commenting on Asean's quest to become the world's fourth-largest economy by 2045, as outlined in the Kuala Lumpur Declaration 2025 signed on Monday (May 26) at the 46th Asean Summit chaired by Malaysia. The economic blueprint adopted by Asean leaders on Monday is a comprehensive roadmap incorporating six strategic goals, 44 objectives, and 192 strategic measures, with a people-centred approach as one of its core thrusts. It was developed through a comprehensive consultative process involving all AEC sectoral bodies and inputs from other Asean Community Pillars, alongside consultations with 315 stakeholders' representatives from businesses, academia, civil society, parliamentarians, and more. A region-wide public survey involving 7,568 respondents from Asean member states and Timor-Leste was also conducted for this purpose. The strategic plan is one of four strategic plans under the broader Asean Community Vision 2045. However, Tan cautioned the region to address challenges that hinder Asean from achieving its goal, such as ensuring continued development in Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam to reduce economic disparity among member states. "Asean could encourage growth throughout by increasing intra-regional trade and investment, as well as upskilling the workforce across the region," he said. Asean's total trade improved significantly to US$3.8 trillion in 2024 from US$2.3 trillion in 2015, but intra-Asean trade only increased to US$0.8 trillion from US$0.5 trillion during the period. Turning to the potential conclusion of the free trade agreement (FTA) between Asean and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), he said it could significantly boost regional development. Tan pointed out that the GCC, which collectively manages sovereign wealth funds worth an estimated US$4.9 trillion, could play a major role in injecting capital into Asean economies. "If the FTA between Asean and the GCC can be concluded favourably, the injection could be a major contributor to the development of the region. "The same applies to Chinese investments, particularly through Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)," he said. While deeper integration promises benefits, he acknowledged that it will take time and strong political will among member countries of the 57-year-old grouping. "This is where the AEC and its four pillars come in, namely, having a single market, being competitive, equitable development, and integration into the global economy," he said. Asean also aspires to be a prosperous single market with a highly-skilled and inclusive workforce, productivity and innovation-driven growth, while incorporating sustainability across and along the value chain through Asean Community Vision 2045 (ACV 2045). Tan said harmonising Asean economies into a single market is highly challenging given the significant differences in the economic structures of each member nation. "Convincing member states to form an economic union requires guarantees that the interests of the individual states do not become subservient to those of the more influential or powerful states within the bloc. "This is why equitable development that emphasises common or shared prosperity becomes a major point in ensuring that a single market could ultimately be achieved," he said. Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid emphasised that now is the time to strengthen and enhance collaboration across the region. He noted that Asean has the scale and potential to emerge as a major force in global trade, investment, climate action, and security cooperation. This transformation, he said, could be catalysed by the upcoming AEC Strategic Plan, which is expected to guide the region's next phase of economic and structural growth. "The time for better and effective collaboration is now, as the global superpowers, such as the United States and China, will continue to be at loggerheads on many issues. "Asean as a region needs to be more proactive in promoting deeper integration across various areas, including economics, infrastructure, climate change, and security," he said. Mohd Afzanizam added that identifying the right industry niches and fostering collaboration—rather than competition—among member countries should serve as the guiding principle for effective regional cooperation. He said Asean must formulate a strategic framework for industrial development that enables member countries to complement one another within the supply chain and integrate more effectively with global markets. "Each member country has its own investment promotion agencies, special economic zones, customs procedures, and regulations that need to be harmonised for effective collaboration. "Some member countries are rich in natural resources, while others have strong financial markets," he said. – Bernama
The Sun
26-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Myanmar stays committed to ASEAN despite domestic challenges
KUALA LUMPUR: Despite grappling with ongoing domestic challenges, Myanmar continues to play an active and constructive role within the ASEAN framework, particularly in driving the region's economic agenda forward, ASEAN Deputy Secretary-General for ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Satvinder Singh said. Speaking at a recent engagement, he emphasised Myanmar's unwavering commitment to ASEAN's initiatives, noting that the country remains an essential and cooperative member of the bloc. 'In the last couple of years, when they are undergoing so much turmoil domestically, it hasn't stopped them from contributing what they need to contribute in every single initiative of ASEAN. 'Even meetings, where they need to host, they have hosted when there are key agreements where they need to vote, they did - knowing that in ASEAN, if one country doesn't vote, the agreement doesn't pass through,' he said at a pre-event briefing on the AEC Strategic Plan 2026-2030 recently. Hence, Myanmar's contributions to ASEAN have not wavered, he said. Satvinder also praised the camaraderie and solidarity among ASEAN's economic leaders, including those from Myanmar, calling it a vital force behind the grouping's recent progress. 'When I sit next to the ASEAN Secretary-General, Dr Kao Kim Hourn, and watch how these leaders discuss and align on economic matters, the unity they show is remarkable. That solidarity is exactly what's powering the progress of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC),' he said. He also noted that Myanmar's proactive stance on regional trade and development efforts deserves recognition, especially at a time when internal difficulties could have easily led to disengagement. 'Credit must be given where it's due. Myanmar hasn't just participated; they have contributed meaningfully,' he added. To recap, the 2021 military coup in Myanmar that deposed democratically elected National League for Democracy (NLD) leader Suu Kyi further worsened its situation, prompting the bloc to bar its junta leaders from its summits and ministerial meetings. Nevertheless, Myanmar's senior officials have continued to attend preparatory meetings for ASEAN summits, including the 46th ASEAN Summit. ASEAN Foreign Ministers have agreed that efforts to continue engaging with all stakeholders in Myanmar must persist to find a long-term solution to the protracted crisis in the country. Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan said that Malaysia, as ASEAN Chair, planned to visit Myanmar to formally present a 'wishlist' gathered from various stakeholders to the State Administration Council (SAC). ASEAN will also conduct internal consultation on the proposal for a permanent ASEAN Special Envoy to Myanmar, he said.
The Sun
26-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Despite domestic challenges, Myanmar remains a committed member of ASEAN
KUALA LUMPUR: Despite grappling with ongoing domestic challenges, Myanmar continues to play an active and constructive role within the ASEAN framework, particularly in driving the region's economic agenda forward, ASEAN Deputy Secretary-General for ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Satvinder Singh said. Speaking at a recent engagement, he emphasised Myanmar's unwavering commitment to ASEAN's initiatives, noting that the country remains an essential and cooperative member of the bloc. 'In the last couple of years, when they are undergoing so much turmoil domestically, it hasn't stopped them from contributing what they need to contribute in every single initiative of ASEAN. 'Even meetings, where they need to host, they have hosted when there are key agreements where they need to vote, they did - knowing that in ASEAN, if one country doesn't vote, the agreement doesn't pass through,' he said at a pre-event briefing on the AEC Strategic Plan 2026-2030 recently. Hence, Myanmar's contributions to ASEAN have not wavered, he said. Satvinder also praised the camaraderie and solidarity among ASEAN's economic leaders, including those from Myanmar, calling it a vital force behind the grouping's recent progress. 'When I sit next to the ASEAN Secretary-General, Dr Kao Kim Hourn, and watch how these leaders discuss and align on economic matters, the unity they show is remarkable. That solidarity is exactly what's powering the progress of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC),' he said. He also noted that Myanmar's proactive stance on regional trade and development efforts deserves recognition, especially at a time when internal difficulties could have easily led to disengagement. 'Credit must be given where it's due. Myanmar hasn't just participated; they have contributed meaningfully,' he added. To recap, the 2021 military coup in Myanmar that deposed democratically elected National League for Democracy (NLD) leader Suu Kyi further worsened its situation, prompting the bloc to bar its junta leaders from its summits and ministerial meetings. Nevertheless, Myanmar's senior officials have continued to attend preparatory meetings for ASEAN summits, including the 46th ASEAN Summit. ASEAN Foreign Ministers have agreed that efforts to continue engaging with all stakeholders in Myanmar must persist to find a long-term solution to the protracted crisis in the country. Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan said that Malaysia, as ASEAN Chair, planned to visit Myanmar to formally present a 'wishlist' gathered from various stakeholders to the State Administration Council (SAC). ASEAN will also conduct internal consultation on the proposal for a permanent ASEAN Special Envoy to Myanmar, he said.
The Star
26-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Trade upgrade coming for Asean
Warm welcome: Tengku Zafrul standing alongside fellow AECC ministers before chairing the 25th AECC meeting. — Bernama Expansion of China and regional deals to be signed in October KUALA LUMPUR: Asean has concluded the upgrade of two existing trade agreements, expected to be signed at the 47th Asean Summit in October, says Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz. The Investment, Trade and Industry Minister said such was the result of upgraded negotiations on the Asean-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) 3.0 and the Asean Trade in Goods Agreement (Atiga). 'I am pleased to report that two of our priority economic deliverables for 2025 have been concluded. Both agreements are scheduled to be signed in October. 'We remain confident that these milestones will serve as pivotal enablers for Asean's sustained growth and competitiveness,' he said after chairing the 25th Asean Economic Community Council (AECC) meeting yesterday. Tengku Zafrul said the successful conclusion of these negotiations are expected to enhance the region's economic integration and generate significant economic benefits for Asean as it navigates an increasingly volatile global economic landscape. He said Atiga, long regarded as the cornerstone of Asean's economic integration, will feature forward-looking and commercially meaningful provisions aimed at further boosting regional trade, enhancing supply chain resilience and promoting deeper economic integration. Tengku Zafrul also said the AECC meeting concluded negotiations on the enhanced memorandum of agreement on the Asean Power Grid (APG) initiative and it is scheduled to be signed at the 43rd Asean Ministers on Energy meeting in October. He also welcomed the establishment of APG financing facility network, which will enhance cross-border flows of foreign direct investments and new funding opportunities for regional energy-related projects. On the Asean Economic Community Blueprint 2025, Tengku Zafrul said the blueprint has an overall implementation rate of 97%. 'This year marks another pivotal milestone for Asean, as we prepare to launch the successor to the AEC Blueprint, which is the Asean Economic Community (AEC) Strategic Plan 2026-2030,' he added. The AEC Strategic Plan 2026-2030 will be launched today.
