 | Issue: | Asia-Pacific I 2001 |
| Article no.: | 10 | |
| Topic: | Building an E-ASEAN | |
| Author: | Rodolfo c. Severino | |
| Title: | Secretary-General | |
| Organisation: | Association of Southeast Asian Nations | |
| PDF size: | 32KB |
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Article abstract
In November this year, the leaders of the ten Southeast Asian countries will sign the e-ASEAN Framework Agreement that will establish a region-wide approach to making greater use of information and communications technologies (ICT) in business, society and the government.
Full Article
Under this initiative, member countries will co-ordinate in formulating national laws, policies and programmes to promote a favourable environment for the development and use of ICT. This initiative is expected to boost the regions competitiveness in the surging knowledge-based global economy. The high-level public-private sector task force, which is developing the e-ASEAN concept, is led by representatives of the private sector in recognition of its pivotal role in information and communications technology development. The implementation of the agreement shall be a showcase of public-private sector collaboration. E-ASEAN will promote the inter-connections and interoperability of the communications facilities among the countries in the region to attain greater efficiency in the transmission of and access to information. It will encourage the use of the Internet and other electronic means in doing business, as the world’s largest corporations and the wisest small businesses are doing. E-ASEAN will cover the public sector, which will identify certain sectors that will employ ICT to improve the delivery of public goods and services, including the issuance of licenses, clearances and other public documents. ASEAN members will commit them-selves to remove tariff and other barriers to international trade in ICT goods and services. An e-ASEAN readiness guide will be developed to determine the e-readiness and identify “digital gaps” in the region. It will include guidelines for establishing and harmonising laws and policies for e-commerce development. There will also be guidelines for the development of common technical standards to promote the interoperability of e-applications throughout the region. The guidelines will ensure that technical standards adopted by vendors do not impede users from effectively using ICT to conduct business and communicate with one another. The establishment of a Certification Authority Forum has been proposed to look into cross-border certification issues, such as mutual recognition of digital signatures. An ASEAN Internet Service Providers (ISP) Forum has been convened to explore ways of promoting a more efficient flow of Internet traffic. Among the options being studied by the forum is the establishment of an ASEAN Internet exchange, through which all ISPs in the region can course intra-regional traffic, thus avoiding having to go through North America. The e-ASEAN initiative demonstrates ASEANs recognition that information and communication technologies stand out as the driving force of today’s economy. The information revolution has created challenges and opportunities for all countries in the increasingly global economy. They are potential integrators of an increasingly seamless global village. At the same time, ASEAN realises that ICT can also cause greater divisions not only between rich and poor countries in the world, but also within societies. It has been said that the death of distance and the digital divide are arriving hand-in-hand. The tables above show the extent of the digital divide – between most of ASEAN and others in the Asia-Pacific, within ASEAN itself, and within most ASEAN countries. The consequences of the digital divide can be harsh. It may leave many developing nations far behind, resulting in growing disparities between countries and societies. The United Nations Development Report of 1999 warned that the gains in productivity produced by the new technology might widen differences in economic growth between the most affluent nations and those that lack the skills, resources and infrastructure to invest in the information society. UNESCO has also observed that the North-South divide may be exacerbated in a situation where most of the world’s population lacks basic access to telephones, let alone computers. Lack of access to technology and the Internet would keep many small and medium enterprises from being competitive. The gap could have serious economic consequences for the Third World, since jobs in the fastest growing industries and markets all depend on having high-technology skills. E-ASEAN is the regions collective response to these challenges. It shall build on an earlier project aimed at promoting an ASEAN Information Infrastructure, which covered standardisation, interconnection and inter-operability of information technology systems among the ASEAN members. As envisioned, the AII would link ASEAN up with other major ICT efforts in the region and the world, such as the Asia-Pacific Information Infrastructure and the Global Information Infrastructure. It would build upon the ICT plans of individual ASEAN member countries, such as Brunei Darussalams RaGAM 21, Indonesias Nusantara 21, Malaysias Multimedia Super Corridor, IT21 of the Philippines, and IT2000 of Singapore. The development of e-ASEAN is expect-ed to create investment opportunities for both local and foreign investors in the ICT industry. For a start, the e-ASEAN Task Force has approved a number of private sector-funded pilot projects, which aim to demonstrate the potential and benefits of using ICT by ASEAN companies, particularly small and medium enterprises and individual entrepreneurs. Pilot projects are also expected to promote skills building and increase awareness and trust in the Internet. These pilot projects in different sectors include the ASEAN Internet Exchange; ASEAN e-Tourism Portal (e-commerce); ASEAN SchoolNet (e-society); and Cyberlaw training workshops for legislators, government counsels and judges (e-government). More information on the pilot projects and other activities of the e-ASEAN Conclusion At the dawn of the new millennium, advances in information and tele-communications technologies are changing the way people work, live and think. These innovations are certain to create opportunities that will make profound contributions to sustaining economic development and improving the people’s quality of life. E-ASEAN project will give Southeast Asia a blueprint for plugging itself into the global e-space. The development of e-ASEAN will create many opportunities for foreign direct investments, which continue to play an increasingly important role in the regions greater economic integration.
