ASEAN mulls ways to transform into cyber-region
ASEAN mulls ways to transform into cyber-region
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Senior officials Wednesday began a two-day meeting on ways to prepare Southeast Asia for the knowledge economy.
The meeting will precede the first meeting on Friday of telecommunications ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Talks will focus on developing infrastructure for telecoms and information technology in the region, said a senior official at Malaysia's Energy, Communications and Multimedia Ministry.
"As the stage of development varies for ASEAN members, we will see how we can help weaker countries such as Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar through private-sector initiatives," he told AFP.
Officials will also discuss efforts to create a skilled workforce to cope with the transition to the knowledge-based era.
Talks would also center on the digital divide in the region and how to improve the rate of IT literacy, he added.
ASEAN telecoms senior officials first met in Brunei last October.
A Malaysian delegate said the meeting was likely to discuss a proposed "mutual recognition agreement" (MRA) on product certification. For example, he said products tested in Malaysia and exported to Singapore would not have to be certified again in Singapore.
"I think everybody will endorse plans for MRA and set a date for when they are ready to implement this," he added.
According to a Malaysian ministry statement, ministers will Friday sign an agreement on ASEAN cooperation in telecoms and IT.
The document formalizes the establishment of the ASEAN telecoms ministers and senior officials forums and identifies broad areas of cooperation, it said.
"Among the critical areas are infrastructure development, trade and investment, harmonization of telecommunications and IT policies, content development and public-private sector collaboration," it added.
Idros Abdul Hamid, an officer with the Jakarta-based ASEAN secretariat, said it would engage a professional consultant next week to assess the readiness of member countries to embrace IT and to study investment opportunities and the digital divide.
A report would be presented at the ASEAN summit in Brunei in November.
Idros said around 20 private-sector led projects have been initiated over the past two years, including the creation of a "virtual marketplace" for farmers and an e-ASEAN tourism portal.