August 14, 2021
Union Minister for Investment and Foreign Economic Relations U Aung Naing Oo chaired the 8th AEC Committees Meeting for the Implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) 2025 via video conference yesterday together with attendance of deputy ministers, permanent secretaries, directors general and representatives from 22 AEC working committees.
The Union Minister explained the objective of the meeting as preparations for the 53rd ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) Meeting and related meetings which will be held in September. He said that the committees needed the pragmatic approach for the AEC 2025 implementation activities, streamlining the process of committees and developing specific terms of reference for the focal departments and members.
He stated that 148 Annual Economic Priorities are set out to implement ASEAN Economic Community as a whole and out of them, 67 annual Priorities are completed. Myanmar implemented the most of annual priorities, and the rest are mostly ongoing regional activities. He urged them to expedite utmost effort for ensuring the implementation of the remaining annual priorities in a timely manner.
He also highlighted that the plan of Myanmar will undergo its mid-term review based on AEC Mid-term Review for the effective implementation and the national scorecard of sectoral implementation will also be conducted. The necessary preparation will be done for the rest of the implementation period and Myanmar mid-term review will be supported for further AEC implementation activities and also point out where Myanmar position in the implementation of AEC.
The Union Minister explained the importance of the completion of domestic procedures for the signing of the agreements and ratification of the signed agreements in time, and he also mentioned that the coordination mechanism is essential for sectoral bodies in order to receive the policy decision in a timely manner.
Deputy Minister U Than Aung Kyaw explained the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework (ACRF) and its implementation plan which aimed to remedy the adverse impact of COVID-19 pandemic in the region. The framework was adopted by the leaders at the 37th ASEAN Summit in November 2020, and included the activities under the five broad strategies. He also explained the implementation status of the framework under purview of AEM. He also expressed the drafting of Myanmar Economic Recovery Plan in line with the ACRF. He informed the participants that the ministry will explore to receive the technical and financial support for the implementation of activities.
According to the agenda, Director General Dr. Wah Wah Maung from Foreign Economic Relations Department clarified the outcomes of the Third Meeting of the ASEAN Senior Economic Officials for the Fifty Second Economic Ministers’ Meeting.
Then, participants reported on the progress and status of the relevant sectoral bodies.—MNA
