ASEAN's economic ministers call for more efforts to deepen economic integration

The economic ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) called for more efforts to fulfill the goal of deepening integration of the region at the end of a two-day meeting here Sunday.

The ministers said in a statement that the formal establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by the end of 2015 marks a major milestone in ASEAN's effort to fulfill the goal of an integrated region. However, the implementation of the AEC measures does not mean that ASEAN will become a single economic entity by January 1, 2016.

They highlighted that the focus for this year would be on further simplification of customs procedures, harmonization of standards, further liberalization of services and enhanced trade facilitation.

The ministers noted that the AEC will require further enhancements to meet the demands and challenges over the next 10 years.

The blueprint of the AEC was first put forward by ASEAN leaders at the 13th summit in November 2007. At the last ASEAN Summit in Myanmar, leaders from the bloc agreed to formally announce the establishment of AEC by 31 December, 2015. However, economists and experts believe that there will be a long way to go for ASEAN to have an effective economic community like the European Union. Enditem