U.S. slowdown highlights case for SE Asian reform<\/p>\n
HANOI (AFP): Southeast Asia must push ahead with efforts to
\nintegrate its poorer members, implement reforms and tear down
\ntariff barriers to better deal with the U.S.-led global economic
\nslowdown, a top ASEAN official said on Friday.<\/p>\n
Rodolfo Severino, secretary general of the Association of
\nSoutheast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said this was not the time to
\nslacken efforts to help ASEAN's less developed members catch up
\nwith their richer neighbors.<\/p>\n
Asked if the global slowdown would set back ASEAN's efforts,
\nSeverino told reporters: \"No. In fact that is a spur to further
\nintegration because you can't deal with a lot of these problems
\nindividually any more.\"<\/p>\n
ASEAN has to \"push regional integration in order to become
\nmore attractive to investments\", otherwise the region will lose
\nout to China, India, Latin America and even Eastern Europe, he
\nsaid on the sidelines of annual ASEAN talks in Vietnam.<\/p>\n
Senior ASEAN officials are preparing for a meeting here next
\nweek of their foreign ministers, who will also get together with
\ntheir top trading and security partners such as the United
\nStates, China, Japan and Russia.<\/p>\n
Discussions on Friday dealt with ways to hasten the
\nintegration of newer ASEAN members Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and
\nVietnam with the group's founders Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia,
\nthe Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.<\/p>\n
ASEAN represents a market of 500 million people but
\nencompasses some of the world's poorest countries with one of the
\nrichest, Singapore.<\/p>\n
\"We are focussing on the integration of the newer members,\"
\nSeverino said, adding there were discussions on how to coordinate
\nvarious programs to spur economic development in the Mekong River
\ncountries including Vietnam and Laos.<\/p>\n
The ASEAN chief said integration would take time because the
\neconomic gap \"is pretty wide\". The focus was on developing human
\nresources and building institutions that would strengthen the
\nrule of law.<\/p>\n
\"If you are perceived to have a system of law in place, then
\nyou have a better chance of attracting investments,\" he said,
\nadding that \"worries about the political situation in some ASEAN
\ncountries\" had deterred investors.<\/p>\n
Although the annual foreign ministers' meeting is intended
\nlargely as a forum for security issues, with Indonesia's chronic
\ninstability likely to loom large, officials said there was no
\nescaping the recent economic downturn.<\/p>\n
\"These are bad times and we're trying to deal with it by
\npushing economic integration and harnessing ICT (information and
\ncommunications technology) and continuing with national and
\nstructural reforms,\" Severino said.<\/p>\n
The ASEAN Free Trade Area, which aims to bring down tariffs to
\nbetween zero and five percent by 2003 for ASEAN's more developed
\nmembers, was on track, he added.<\/p>\n
Singapore, ASEAN's strongest economy, has plunged into
\nrecession due to falling exports and weak industrial output, and
\nother export-reliant ASEAN countries have slashed growth
\nforecasts this year as well.<\/p>\n
Severino said China would pose tougher competition for ASEAN
\nnations after it becomes a member of the World Trade
\nOrganization, but there were also opportunities.<\/p>\n
\"This is not a zero-sum game,\" he said. \"If the barriers are
\nlowered for ASEAN exports to China then that's good for us.\"<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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