Kuala lumpur: Asian countries can continue to advance regional economic interests and strengthen their collective resilience by maintaining clarity on their objectives and not succumbing to external uncertainties.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS) director Tan Sri Dr Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria stated that governments can utilize resources within ASEAN and Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) to formulate policies aimed at boosting domestic demand and reducing reliance on export-driven growth. “It is time to nurture a stronger and more affluent middle class for sustainable economic growth,” she asserted during her keynote address at the Kuala Lumpur Roundtable on Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation of the Boao Forum for Asia.
Sta Maria, who previously served as the executive director of the APEC secretariat, emphasized that ASEAN serves as a robust mechanism for fostering cooperation and advancing integration among its members, providing ideas for policy alignment and regional advancement. Meanwhile, APEC offers an invaluable platform to introduce new ideas and policies. “We’re really exploring possibilities for a greater area for trade freedom. It is crucial that we direct our efforts towards priority areas, including collaborating to deepen connectivity, and avoid being distracted by the prevailing ambiguities around the United States’ actions,” she stated.
According to Sta Maria, ASEAN has successfully collaborated with ASEAN+1, ASEAN+3, and more importantly, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), where the upgrade of the ASEAN-China free trade agreement plays a pivotal role. “The upgrade needs to be coordinated with the work that we are doing with the RCEP agreement. We need to look at all this holistically,” she said, highlighting that as a non-binding forum, APEC allows open discussion and experimentation, enabling policymakers to refine strategies.
Sta Maria also underlined that both ASEAN and APEC offer valuable platforms for pursuing structural and regulatory reforms which member governments can leverage to facilitate businesses and promote cross-border collaboration. To strengthen economic collaboration, it is crucial to enhance financial connectivity, specifically in the areas of cross-border payments, data flow, data protection, and cybersecurity, she noted.
“At the same time, it is important to support enterprises in transitioning from the informal to the formal economy, and we spent a lot of time last year focusing on how we can do this. So there is material that economies and industries can use to tap into the work done at APEC last year,” she said. Sta Maria emphasized that this transition not only fortifies economic frameworks but also broadens the tech space and contributes to sustainable long-term development.
“Now is the right time to shift the narrative surrounding our region. By investing in our own markets and companies, we can build a more robust and self-reliant economic future. It is our chance to reaffirm our commitment to regional prosperity and collective economic advancement,” she concluded.