May 09, 2011
Jakarta Globe
Connectivity and community were the buzz words at the 18th Asean Summit that ended on Sunday. Despite the ongoing border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, the spirit of cooperation that has become the hallmark of the regional grouping was very much evident.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in his closing remarks that the 10 Asean leaders who attended the two-day summit understood the importance of improving connectivity in the region by building more telecommunications and transportation infrastructure.
The president asked for the master plan for Asean connectivity be followed up with efforts from all member countries to create connectivity in their respective countries, on the regional level and in people-to-people contact.
Yudhoyono hit the nail on the head when he added that connectivity was not just about building mobility but also an effort to reduce disparities between member countries, allowing them to narrow the development gap between them.
The two-day summit also created consensus among the leaders that they need to cooperate more in facing the challenge of energy shortages that have become a global threat by reducing dependence on fossil fuel and turning more toward renewable energy.
Asean has come along way since its founding, and today it represents a region of nearly 700 million people and a gross domestic product of $2.9 trillion. It is rich in human capital as well as natural resources. It offers tremendous potential but also faces huge challenges.
It was appropriate that the theme for this year’s summit was connectivity. In a globalized world, no nation or region can survive or progress on its own. Asean may be still far from reaching the level of connectivity achieved by the European Union, but the desire and intention to create a community of nations is certainly there.
The leaders of the 10 member countries have also started looking beyond 2015, when the Asean Community will be in place. By then, there will be free movement of goods, capital and skilled labor in the region. This will almost certainly benefit all the member countries, but in the end, Asean must be relevant to the business community and the man on the street.
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