The Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ private sector is pressing economic ministers to turn years of regional integration into actual business opportunities, investments and jobs, with easier trade rules and stronger support for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) at the center of its agenda.
ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) Chair Joey Concepcion said the region already has the agreements and institutions needed to deepen integration. The next step, he said, is making them work better for businesses.
“The opportunity now is to make these mechanisms more accessible, more responsive, and more effective on the ground,” Concepcion said at the 24th AEM-ASEAN BAC Consultation on Saturday.
From the business sector’s perspective, ASEAN should become “easier, usable and inclusive,” allowing companies to move goods, services, data and investments with fewer obstacles.
Concepcion urged governments to make existing mechanisms, including the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, ASEAN Single Window, ASEAN Power Grid and digital economy agreements, more practical for companies.
For ASEAN’s more than 70 million MSMEs, ASEAN-BAC is pushing wider access to the “three Ms” of mentorship, money and markets, backed by digital and artificial intelligence skills. It also proposed recognizing the Philippines as the site of an ASEAN Center of Excellence for MSMEs.
The council is likewise advancing programs for women’s economic empowerment and youth entrepreneurship, including the MANA digital platform.
Food security is another priority. ASEAN-BAC called for stronger early-warning systems, intra-regional trade and logistics, blended finance and agricultural technology, alongside a formal private-sector delivery mechanism.
Concepcion said the ASEAN Food Security Alliance has 23 joint ventures with an initial investment pipeline of more than USD200 million, about 30,000 projected direct and indirect jobs within two years, and roughly 200,000 hectares of clustered agricultural land.
“We should not wait for the next food shock,” he said. “We must build resilience before it happens.”
