REALIZING AN ASEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY: PROGRESS AND REMAINING CHALLENGE

2016 ◽  
Vol 62 (03) ◽  
pp. 681-702 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAYANT MENON ◽  
ANNA CASSANDRA MELENDEZ

Launched as a political bloc and security pact in the aftermath of the Viet Nam War, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has evolved to embrace an ambitious economic agenda. Its latest project was the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) on 31 December 2015. Fulfilling these commitments would promote predictability in ASEAN, as well as strengthen its credibility. But to what extent has ASEAN met this deadline? The blueprint for achieving the goal envisages the AEC standing on four pillars and meeting the deadline depends on progress on each of them. Each pillar presents a demanding set of challenges to be met before the AEC can be fully realized. We find that although ASEAN has come a long way toward realizing its goal, considerable challenges remain. Accommodating AEC accords will not be easy when they require changes to domestic laws or even the national constitution. The flexibility that characterizes ASEAN cooperation, the celebrated “ASEAN way”, may hand member states a convenient pretext for non-compliance. How to enforce the accords remains an issue. If the AEC is to be more than a display of political solidarity, ASEAN must find a way to give the commitments more teeth. The real test for the community, therefore, will lie in the years ahead.

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 391-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhida CHEN

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has, on various occasions, concluded treaties on behalf of its Member States. This raises some interesting questions: is ASEAN entitled to enter into treaties on behalf of its Member States; and if so, what should be the status of ASEAN and its Member States vis-à-vis the other party to the treaty? The issue is not one of whether the ASEAN Member States have consented to such a practice—it must be assumed that they have. Instead, the real issue is whether such treaty-making practice can and should be valid under international law, even if the Member States have consented for ASEAN to conclude these treaties on their behalf. This paper will argue that, under international law, ASEAN is entitled to conclude treaties on behalf of its Member States.


2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 236
Author(s):  
Sugiarto Pramono ◽  
Anna Yulia Hartati ◽  
Adi Joko Purwanto

The findings in this article defy the common assumption that the free market, including the formation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in Southeast Asia, is correlated with the creation of a spillover and complex interdependency, reducing conflicts between countries in the region. This finding could well contribute as a theory in the academic sphere and as policies in the practical world. The author uses a theoretical framework of structural realism to explain the potential conflict between countries of the Southeast Asian region. There are four potential conflict situations among countries in the implementation of AEC: firstly, the structure of economic disparity. This situation would construct an identity of in-group – out-group or “us” versus “them” in the context of who gains and loses in the AEC. Secondly, similarity of natural resources. This fact led the Southeast Asian countries to compete and create standardization wherein each party is in hostile competition to claim valid findings and arguments associated with efforts to reduce or stop the flow of imports into their respective countries. Thirdly, competition among businesses, in which AEC constructed free market could potentially provoke the emergence of regional trading cartel. Fourthly, the structure of military power. Historical records show that any economic growth occurring in a country will be accompanied by the growth of its military budget.


2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 144-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele Tuccio

International labor mobility in Southeast Asia has risen drastically in recent decades and is expected to continue increasing with the establishment of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Economic Community in 2015. This paper looks at the determinants of the movement of workers and finds three structural factors that will likely drive further intra-ASEAN migration in the coming years: (i) demographic transition, (ii) large income differentials between economies, and (iii) the porosity of borders. A microfounded gravity model is estimated in order to empirically analyze the main determinants of intra-ASEAN migration in the period 1960–2000. Results suggest that the movement of migrants between Southeast Asian economies has mostly been driven by higher wages and migrant social networks in destination economies, as well as natural disasters in origin economies.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ha Nam Khanh Giao ◽  
Dinh Kiem

ASEAN là một trong những đối tác quan trọng hàng đầu về thương mại và đầu tư đối với Việt Nam. Cuối năm 2015, các nước ASEAN chính thức bước vào sân chơi mới: Cộng đồng kinh tế ASEAN (ASEAN Economic Community- AEC) với mục đích tạo lập một thị trường chung và cơ sở thống nhất cho các quốc gia, thúc đẩy thông thương tự do hàng hóa- dịch vụ- đầu tư, chuyển dịch lao động có tay nghề trong ASEAN. Việt Nam thuộc nhóm chậm phát triển trong ASEAN, được dự báo có thể đối mặt với sự cạnh tranh khốc liệt về kinh tế và nguồn lao động. Trong bài viết này, các tác giả chỉ tập trung phân tích các yếu tố tác động, những cơ hội và thách thức trên lĩnh vực thị trường lao động. Qua đó, gợi ý một số giải pháp nhằm tận dụng cơ hội và đối phó với những thách thức trong tiến trình hội nhập AEC.


2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 71-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deunden Nikomborirak

ASEAN is considered one of the most successful economic regions, because it managed to dismantle many of the tariff barriers among the ten member states. Its more ambitious goal, however—of becoming not only a single trade area, but also a single production base by the year 2015—appears elusive. The investment liberalization goals stipulated in the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint, a roadmap for regional economic integration, is meek, indicating unwillingness of member states to open up their cosseted and, at times, lucrative, service sectors. Moreover, current commitments of member states do not even match up with such goals. To be able to establish a regional production base, member states will have to stand up against local interest groups that benefit from the status quo, be they large domestic state and private companies operating in key service sectors such as telecommunications, energy and finance, or professional councils or professional associations that would like to reserve jobs exclusively for their members. If not, the region will certainly gradually but surely lose its economic flair.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörn Dosch

AbstractOn 31 December 2015, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) announced the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). In theory, this agreement has produced association-wide economic integration. However, following the announcement and for the foreseeable future, ASEAN member states will continue to have significantly less than full regional economic integration. Why? Some observers believe that the AEC plans involve an overly ambitious timeline and too many ill-thought-out initiatives. Others point to ASEAN's traditional aversion to legally binding agreements. While progress has been made in reducing or eliminating intra-ASEAN trade tariffs, substantial non-tariff barriers to trade persist. However, for most member states, the ASEAN market is relatively small, while external markets, especially China, are growing rapidly. Given this outward orientation for ASEAN trade, is the lack of an unhindered regional market really a problem?


2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 47-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janina Witkowska

The aim of the paper is to determine the current state of the integration processes in the global economy and prognosticate on the foreseeable changes in this phenomenon in the upcoming. Will they be divergence from or continuity with the past trends in the global economy in this field? The article examines three regional integration groupings, i.e. the European Union, ASEAN Economic Community, and NAFTA. The analysis makes it possible to conclude that all of these groupings/organizations are encountering some problems. In the case of the EU, these are mainly: the two – speed integration process as far as a monetary union is concerned; serious negative consequences of the global financial crisis for the socio-economic cohesion of the EU-28; as well as a worsening position in the world trade in goods and services and in the total global gross capital inflows. The problems of the ASEAN Economic Community seem to be connected with some discrepancies between the political will in favour of deepening integration among member states and the real economic difficulties involved in attaining higher stages of integration among a group of countries extremely differentiated in their economic development. NAFTA’s problems also lie in the asymmetrical development between member states, as well as in the lessening importance of the integration within the organization for the member states, which results from the putting into effect numerous other FTAs. The growing openness of all the analyzed integration groupings, being in line with the globalization process, seems to be a future characteristic of integration processes in the global economy.


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