Singapore has big role to ensure Asean stays relevant and competitive

THE curtain has fallen on the Philippines' year-long chairmanship of the Association of South-east Asian Nations (Asean), and the ceremonial gavel was passed to Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in Manila this week, as the Republic gears up to helm the 10-member bloc in 2018.

It probably goes without saying that there is never an easy time to take the reins of the 50-year-old grouping, but Singapore - which last chaired Asean in 2007 - does have a particularly heavy load of responsibilities to handle.

On top of the dozens of meetings that Singapore will host through the year, Asean will hold special summits in Australia and India, celebrate 45 years of relations with Japan, and mark the 25th anniversary of the Asean Regional Forum.

There are also the so-called "legacy issues" that Singapore must contend with, including the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) free-trade deal between Asean and its six key partners, and the highly sensitive South China Sea territorial dispute involving China and a number of Asean member states.

The RCEP negotiations have still not concluded after five years of talks, and there is pressure to provide the political momentum to reach an agreement on this massive trade pact that is seen as a China-led rival to the Trans-Pacific Partnership; the latter is now spearheaded by Japan, following the withdrawal of the United States earlier this year.

There was also significant progress on the South China Sea issue when China agreed, at the recent Asean Summit in Manila, to begin talks on the fine print of a code-of-conduct framework. Singapore will undoubtedly be in the spotlight over the next 12 months as it will carry on as the appointed country coordinator for Asean-China dialogue relations.

Then there are also newer issues on the agenda that Asean must address. When Mr Lee outlined Singapore's priorities for its chairmanship of Asean, he spoke of the need to tap new ways to manage and mine digital technologies, and arm Asean's 600-million strong population with the necessary skills and capabilities.

There is much potential when it comes to the digital economy. Many of the Asean economies are strong in technology adoption, in particular e-commerce and the building of smart cities. The latest figures show that Asean's digital economy is expected to grow by 500 per cent to about US$200 billion by 2025, and there is every incentive for countries to work together and leverage one another's strengths.

As things stand, Asean's combined gross domestic product is likely to reach US$8.1 trillion in 2030, up from the current US$2.5 trillion. This will make Asean the fourth-largest economy in the world. As the regional bloc enters the next half-century of its development, all the member states need to double down on efforts to ensure the grouping remains credible, relevant and competitive for the long haul.