THE ASEAN Business Advisory Council (BAC) wants the member nations to expedite the establishment of the ASEAN Business Entity (ABE) initiative as it can be a game changer for economic growth.
This is the focal point for the advisory council with Malaysia shouldering the lead as the ASEAN chairman this term, said the ASEAN-BAC chairman Tan Sri Nazir Razak.
He said that since the failure to realise the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) concept in 2015, the private sector in the region has now come up with a realistic alternative, which is the ASEAN-ABE.
ASEAN-ABE will enable each company to be recognised and certified by their respective nation as an ASEAN-level corporate, business or commercial entity.
Through SEAN-ABE, companies can move staff more easily throughout the region without working visas and outsourcing of work can also be better coordinated among companies.
More cross-border business initiatives can be derived from this concept, said Nazir.
He told a press conference this after chairing the ASEAN - BAC 102nd council meeting at the E & O Hotel in Penang.
It is also the 25th joint council meeting of the apex private sector body of the regional grouping.
The former banker is hoping that Malaysia, as the chair of this year's ASEAN grouping, would realise the concept of ASEAN-ABE and ensure it can be adopted within the region.
ASEAN has a combined GDP of around USD$3.8 trillion as of 2023.
This makes it the fifth largest economy in the world, after the US, China, Japan, and Germany with a population base of around 677 million as of 2023.
Nazir said that under the grouping's strategic plan, ASEAN-ABE can be seen as a strong pillar to generate economic growth while also helping the region attract more investments, upskilling and consolidating efforts to promote greenery and sustainability.
As for the threat by incoming US president Donald J. Trump to impose additional tariffs on certain countries, especially China in a widening trade war. Nazir said that such threats make it crucial for ASEAN to come together.
He lamented that as a grouping, it has taken quite a while for the grouping to integrate their economies better.
But with the US threat to decouple from the liberalisation of world trade amid global uncertainty, Nazir said that it is in such an age that ASEAN could solidify its standing regionally.
He acknowledged that countries with strong trade ties with China are worried about the impending US-China trade war since it is built on punitive tariffs.
At the conference here, ASEAN-BAC also unveiled 12 initiatives, 33 partnerships and three memorandum of understanding (MoU).
Malaysia, as the chair, has selected 25 local companies to be part of its 12 initiatives established under the framework of business ties, labour exchanges, digital exchanges, diversity, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and initial public offering prospectus. - January 16, 2025.
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