by Kaisar | Feb 9, 2015 | Consumer Protection, Projects
Status: Completed. Consumer protection requires consumers to have the ability to right the wrongs or to prevent future abuses. This requires access to an effective redress and complaint mechanism. According to data collected through the Road-mapping Capacity Building Needs in Consumer Protection in ASEAN project, only a handful of ASEAN Member States have put in place an effective redress and complaint mechanisms for consumers. In other ASEAN Member States, redress and complaint mechanism are not yet fully responsive. Due to the disparity, there is yet an effective regional or cross-border regional redress mechanism. This project aims to formulate models for a redress and complaint mechanisms that can be considered, adopted and implemented by ASEAN Member States based on the specific ASEAN Member States context. The project will identify best practices in setting up, implementing and enforcing redress and complaint mechanism from ASEAN Member States and other countries as appropriate, and develop models with clear parameters to guide the subsequent adoption of a specific model by ASEAN Member States. The models will be customised and phased to cater to the general ASEAN Member States and the sub-group countries. The models will serve as a reference to set up or enhance redress mechanisms at the national level, and provide an integrated basis for subsequently establishing an effective regional redress mechanism. This project has been completed in 2013. Results of this project can be downloaded below: Models for Internal Complaint Systems and External Consumer Redress Schemes in ASEAN Guidelines for the Selection and Implementation of Complaint and Redress Models ...
by Kaisar | Feb 9, 2015 | Consumer Protection, Projects
Status: Completed. This project focuses on identifying areas in ASEAN Member States that need to be strengthened in terms of the planning, development and implementation of consumer protection programs and the preparation of a capacity building roadmap. Best practices of those ASEAN Member States with consumer protection laws in place and related initiatives were compiled and documented. In addition, the study identified and prioritised potential follow-on projects which include the development of training modules and consumer protection awareness programs. It combined desktop research with field visits to and consultations in ASEAN countries. This project has delivered the following outputs: a policy brief and regional report on consumer protection in ASEAN, a sub-group report for ASEAN Member States that have not yet enacted consumer protection laws, and country-specific reports for each ASEAN Member States. The reports has been presented to the ACCP and used as basis for the design of subsequent regional activities identified below. Related download: ASEAN Consumer Protection: Essential actions towards a single market (2011) ...
by Kaisar | Feb 9, 2015 | Consumer Protection, Projects
Status: completed. As mandated by the ASEAN Economic Ministers, Senior Economic Officials and the Committee of the Whole, there is a need to develop closer coordination among various sectoral bodies of ASEAN. The ASEAN Committee on Consumer Protection (ACCP) is of the view that interaction with other ASEAN sectoral committees is essential to the work of ACCP from 2012-2014, in particular as regards cross-cutting issues affecting the consumers. The ACCP discusses and identifies such possible crosscutting issues, as well as significant trends and emerging issues, and provide the findings and recommendations to other ASEAN sectoral committees for their consideration. At the same time, there is a need to increase coordination between governments and other stakeholders including non-governmental organisations, trade and commerce associations, and the business sector at large, to inform the other ASEAN sectoral committees in setting their agenda in relation to consumer protection. This project aims to provide ACCP with the medium and substance to bring specific consumer protection trends and issues to the attention of other ASEAN sectoral committees and other stakeholders. Topics will be identified and timely studies will be carried out and published quarterly as policy briefs. The project will also support an annual dialogue between stakeholders held in conjunction with the ACCP annual meeting to develop consumer protection knowledge-base in the region and strengthen collaboration among stakeholders. Ultimately, the project would contribute to the design of more coherent ASEAN initiatives to be introduced by various ASEAN sectoral bodies, and help protect consumer rights across sectors and industries through increased participation and awareness of various stakeholders. This project supported the first ASEAN Consumer Protection Annual Conference...
by Kaisar | Feb 9, 2015 | Investment, Projects
Status: Completed. To date, there is not yet a centralised integrated approach in marketing ASEAN as a single investment area. Most efforts to promote investment at the regional level have not been sustainable and tend to be one-off activities or publications. This project builds ASEAN brand as a single investment destination and attract investors through the internet, which would allow ASEAN greater reach and a wider audience in the most effective and cost efficient means. Through this project, the ASEAN Investment Website-Portal had been launched in 2013. The website-portal serves as an information hub and a gateway to attract and facilitate businessmen and firms interested to invest in the region. It includes a database of domestic laws and regulations, schedule of commitments, and links to investment promotion agencies in the region. The project currently supports the update and maintenance of the website-portal. ...
by Kaisar | Feb 9, 2015 | Investment, Projects
The Coordinating Committee on Investment (CCI) is the main ASEAN sectoral body responsible for coordinating activities designed to meet AEC Blueprint goals with respect to enhancing investment. They meet frequently to review activities underway both regionally and within ASEAN Member States and to develop overall policies and approaches for future activities. The CCI functions well as a mechanism for coordinating inputs and implementing the various investment actions under the AEC Blueprint. While it has been driven in the past by the steps listed in the AEC Blueprint, it is recognised that the AEC Blueprint activities are not exhaustive nor of sufficient detail for a comprehensive work program to guide activities in a coordinated and sequenced manner. This short-term project-two weeks of inputs by an experienced professional-resulted in the creation of a multi-year work program for the CCI. Following review of existing materials and discussions with relevant officials, the consultant presented an outline of the work at the 51st CCI meeting in November 2010. Incorporating feedback from the meeting, the work program framework was further developed and structured around seven “pillars” of types of efforts. A range of “actionable activities” were identified and sequenced. The draft CCI work program, entitled “ASEAN Strategic Investment Plan 2011-2015”, was presented at the 52nd CCI meeting in February 2011 and has been approved to be further utilised as a reference document in developing the Investment Implementation Plan 2011-2015. ...
by Kaisar | Feb 9, 2015 | Investment, Projects
Status: Completed Increased FDI flows can be achieved through a number of different approaches. One such approach is outsourcing: the contracting out by a firm of certain business functions, previously undertaken in-house, to an external provider. AADCP II will support efforts to increase outsourcing activities within ASEAN Member States. This project will consist of two components: 1) a comprehensive analytical study on manufacturing outsourcing opportunities in ASEAN with an aim to enhance understanding of outsourcing in general and outsourcing opportunities in ASEAN production networks; and 2) an initial promotional program. The first component included analysis of the theoretical basis of outsourcing as an economic activity and its impact on economies, an assessment of the current outsourcing situation in ASEAN Member States, and identification of factors that affect an outsourcing decision and influence the success of outsourcing activities. While the study assess outsourcing in all ASEAN Member States, it pays particular attention to the CLMV countries (Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Viet Nam) as part of ASEAN’s overall focus on narrowing the development gap. The study produced practical policy recommendations at both regional and national levels for the endorsement of the ASEAN sectoral bodies. The second component focused on the development of a long-term program to promote outsourcing opportunities in ASEAN based on the results of the analytical study. This included development of a long-term strategy and work program for facilitating and promoting outsourcing opportunities, identification of essential activities to promote outsourcing and implementation of initial, selected activities. This project links to a number of other completed AADCP II-supported projects in the investment sector: 1) Enhancing Implementation of ASEAN Agreements; 2) Investment...
