Asean Committed to Greater Economic Integration

Jakarta Globe, Shoeb Kagda, June 01, 2016

More than 500 participants, including 40 government ministers, three heads of
state and two deputy heads of state and 400 chief executives are gathered for
the two-day meeting, which began in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday (01/06).
(Photo courtesy of the World Economic Forum)

Kuala Lumpur. Integration, inclusivity and reform are the key themes of the 25th meeting of the World Economic Forum on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Kuala Lumpur.

More than 500 participants, including 40 government ministers, three heads of state and two deputy heads of state and 400 chief executives are gathered for the two-day meeting, which began on Wednesday (01/06).

In opening the conference, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak noted that the global focus was now squarely on Asean as the regional grouping moved towards greater economic integration.

Collectively the 10 members of Asean have a gross domestic product of $2.3 trillion, making them the seventh-largest economy in the world. With a population of 600 million, Asean is also the world's fourth-largest consumer market.

"We know what we are and we know where we want to go, but do we have the determination to reform our economies to claim the prize?" Razak said. "The great opportunity and promise will not miraculously appear without continued efforts to reform, liberalize and integrate our economies."

He added that as a result, greater efforts needed to be undertaken by all member countries in lowering trade barriers and fostering more openness.

Razak cited the example of how Asean member states have reduced tariffs on imports to near zero but non-tariff barriers have tripled. "The AEC [Asean Economic Community] will never reach true fruition if we do not eradicate these barriers," Razak said. "In short, what is required is nothing short of a complete transformation of Asean."

Speaking on the same panel as the Malaysian prime minister, Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Asean was moving from cooperation to integration but that the process would require time and effort.

Kalla added that for fuller integration, Asean member states will need to discuss standardization of regulations as well as fostering greater connectivity.

"In Indonesia, our philosophy is equity and equality and we are working very hard to create more inclusive growth," he said.

To this end, the government of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is focusing on infrastructure development, improving the agriculture sector and boosting manufacturing.

The vice president added however, that Asean needs to juggle between cooperation and competitiveness as a number of countries in the regional bloc are competing for the same investments.

"We should not allow investors to push our labor costs down and force members to compete against each other," he noted. As a possible solution, Kalla floated the idea of having coordinated minimum wages across the region.

Related Article:

"The Timing of the Great Shift" – Mar 21, 2009 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“… Human Nature is Changing

There's a new concept afoot, a change in Human nature. We've spoken about this before. How many of you studied European history? And in school, did your mind fill up with all of the dates you had to memorize? Who conquered whom and when? Over and over and over, every single country had their turn conquering another country. Borders moved constantly. As far back as you want to go, that's what Humans did. They separated, gathered, and conquered. But as little as 50 years ago, it all stopped.

We've said this before. Fifty years ago, a seed, an idea, was planted at the end of World War II. "Let's put these European countries together," they said. "Let's even drop the borders and eventually give them one currency." Do this and they'll never war again, they predicted, for countries with common economic sources don't go to war! And that's exactly what's happened. Did it work? It's fairly fresh, but their money is threatening to take over the strength of your money, did you notice? It's worth more than yours. They still struggle to make it work and balance it. But then again, you do the same in the United States, always fine tuning the unity.

South America is considering the same thing right now. The seeds are being planted in Brazil. Within a generation, they would love to see the borders dropped and one currency. Can they do it? Perhaps. Perhaps it will take longer. Why do it? Because they see the European Union with the strongest currency on Earth. We've said this before. Here is a prediction: Perhaps not in your time, but there'll come a day when there are only five currencies in the world, because continents will start understanding that unification creates peace and prosperity. Separation creates chaos. What a concept. …”