PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday stressed the need to restore the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), which the Philippines will chair this year, to its position as a global economic driver.
Speaking at the Asean Editors and Economic Opinion Leaders Forum at Fairmont Hotel in Makati City, Marcos said Asean centrality must remain at the core of the regional bloc’s strategy for economic resurgence in line with the Philippines’ chairmanship theme of “Navigating Our Future, Together.”
“I think we share the aspiration; all member states share the aspiration that Asean should return to its old role of being an economic, a global economic driver. That happened in 2019; that's where we were and we need to return to that,” he said.
The president said “together” in practical economic terms meant recognition, understanding and a firm commitment among all 11 member states to work as one while respecting national differences.
He also said that unity did not require uniformity, noting that Asean countries differed in their economies, population size and levels of development.
Despite differences, Marcos said the shared aspiration to reassert Asean’s leadership in the global economy bound the region together.
“That joint and shared aspiration of returning to that role in the global community is something that we hold in our hearts together,” he said.
“Even achieving that will be done in many different ways depending on which country you are talking about. But we have to do it in consonance with one another so that we achieve our own national goals and, at the same time, achieve the goals that we have for Asean," he added.
Asked on concrete policy reforms that the Philippines would push during its chairmanship, the president stressed the need to reinforce supply chains within Asean.
“Very soon after Covid, the discussion around Asean was that we have to learn from the lessons of Covid. One of the great lessons that we had to do was to make more robust our supply chains,” Marcos said.
“And so there has been a joint understanding between member states, let's do it ourselves first. And so, the supply chains within Asean should be strengthened.”
Marcos said that intra-Asean trade currently accounted for only around 23 percent of the region’s total trade, with the remaining 77 percent conducted outside the bloc.
Expanding intra-regional commerce, he said, would significantly enhance Asean’s resilience and competitiveness, positioning the region to reclaim its standing as a major force in the global economy.
The president cited ongoing efforts to advance initiatives such as a common Asean grid and greater coordination among regulatory agencies to standardize importation procedures and improve cross-border business processes.
“We understand how — what the laws are, and we understand what part each country will play as we try to achieve what we try to aspire for, which is to return as a global force in the global economy,” he added.
The Asean Editors and Economic Opinion Leaders Forum is the first major high-level event of the Philippines’ chairmanship of Asean this year.
It convened senior policymakers, business leaders, economists, researchers, Asean officials, representatives of member states’ economic ministries and media partners to discuss priority sectors, inclusive business and the media’s role in explaining Asean and its future to the public.
