by Irene Wijaya | Feb 16, 2021 | Cross Cutting Issues, Projects
Status: Completed. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the growth of all forms of e-commerce in ASEAN. This has increased demand for governments to put in place better policies and infrastructure for e-commerce not only to boost trade and increase consumer’s confidence but also to ensure participation of those most impacted by the coronavirus. The ratification of the ASEAN Agreement on Electronic Commerce would give ASEAN a fresh momentum to support e-commerce businesses in the region. The effective implementation of the agreement would demonstrate ASEAN’s collective efforts in establishing a common fundamental foundation to accelerate intra-regional economic integration towards a regional digital economy. To promote implementation of the agreement, this project prepared a Work Plan on the Implementation of the ASEAN Agreement on Electronic Commerce 2021 – 2025. The Work Plan focuses on identifying priority areas, both technical and policy strengthening, for promoting implementation of the Agreement and ensuring development of e-commerce in the region....
by Irene Wijaya | Feb 16, 2021 | Cross Cutting Issues, Projects
Status: Completed. Past-oriented approaches based on historical models and trends are simply inadequate to respond to the complexity and volatility of today’s development. ASEAN leaders, particularly those in charge of managing Science, Technology and Innovation (STI), need to have the capacity to use a futures approach for strategic planning and risk assessment, to help inform and support decision-making in the management of STI, making sure that STI policies are applicable in times of uncertainties and unforeseen disruptions. This project will use the current experience of the COVID-19 pandemic to illustrate the usefulness of futures thinking and tools in handling unforeseen disruptions from the angle of STI. It will support a series of online workshops and the drafting of a report on megatrends, scenarios and possible collaborative actions to build STI resilience in the future across the ASEAN region. It will also produce draft research papers based on the exercise. This project is implemented through collaboration between ASEAN and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) of...
by Irene Wijaya | Feb 16, 2021 | Connectivity, Projects
Status: Ongoing. With all tariff lines virtually eliminated, ASEAN has refocused its efforts on trade facilitation, including reducing trade transaction costs and addressing NTMs. ASEAN Member States (AMS) have differing national approaches for assessing the barrier effects of draft NTMs as there is no common regional methodology considered as best practice which AMS could refer to. This project seeks to fill this gap by facilitating trade and efficiency for the movement of goods in ASEAN through developing methodologies to conduct the quantitative analysis to identify the trade distortive barrier effects, then assess and quantify the impact of the draft NTMs of three specific product groups. It will also socialise the methodologies and the application outcomes with relevant stakeholders through a series of regional and national capacity building and training...
by Irene Wijaya | Dec 9, 2020 | IAI/NDG, Projects
Status: Completed. In support of the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Work Plan III’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Action III, the project aims to assist business associations in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Viet Nam (CLMV) to better represent the interests of the local business community during policy making by: Identifying gaps for business associations in CLMV countries in developing, managing and delivering advocacy programmes/ activities. Identifying capacity building requirements for CLMV business associations to better conduct business advocacy activities; Providing training and mentoring to participating business associations to develop these skills; and Providing mentoring support for each participating business association to identify and undertake a specific business advocacy activity or programme. For more information about this project, please contact the IAI/NDG Division of the ASEAN...
by Irene Wijaya | Dec 9, 2020 | Energy and Minerals, Projects
Status: Completed. This project provides guidance to ASEAN policy makers and to build their capacity on how to develop, adopt and enforce regionally appropriate policies and programmes with the support of long-term roadmaps for the ASEAN region indicating the targets and actions required in the short, medium and long-term. This project helps address increasing energy demand and emissions and improve collaboration between stakeholders in ASEAN, by developing: a) Roadmap for Energy-Efficient Buildings and Construction in ASEAN which focuses on the policy tools available for ASEAN Member States to drive energy efficiency improvements in the building sector to help meet growing needs for residential and non-residential floor space and energy services, while limiting the growth in energy demand and related emissions. b) Roadmap Towards Sustainable and Energy-Efficient Space Cooling in ASEAN which focuses on the policy tools available for ASEAN Member States to drive energy efficiency improvements for space cooling. It sets ambitious milestones for space cooling technologies, including air conditioners and fans, that can help guide the ambitions outlined in this roadmap and subsequent action across ASEAN. The project was implemented through collaboration with the International Energy Agency...
by Irene Wijaya | Nov 11, 2020 | MSME & private sector engagement, Projects
Status: Completed. As a key stakeholder, the participation and involvement of the private sector is crucial to the creation of a strong foundation for the successful implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). Greater involvement and more structured participation of the private sector can contribute to the success of ASEAN in designing regional strategies and initiatives as well as in identifying impediments to deepen regional economic integration. The AEC, in turn, will also benefit the private sector, both large enterprises as well as small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This is due to an integrated economic region with greater liberalisation and freer movements of goods, services, investment and skilled labour as envisioned in the AEC. The project supported a study to gather insights from ASEAN indigenous enterprises (large enterprises and SMEs) on their sentiments towards the AEC, including the business environment, investment climate, and integration outlook in the region; and in particular, on the impact of services trade liberalisation as facilitated through the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS) and related regional cooperation programmes and initiatives. This study delved deeper to gauge the sentiment on services trade liberalisation and removal of barriers in services trade, focusing on three key sectors, namely financial services, tourism services, and distribution services. This video highlights the findings of this study: Download the report: ASEAN Business Sentiment Survey 2020-2021 | AADCP II (aadcp2.org) For more information regarding this project, please contact the Enterprise and Stakeholders Engagement Division of the ASEAN...
