Indonesian Trade Minister to Promote ASEAN in The US

Palm Springs, California (Antara Bali) - Indonesian Trade Minister Thomas Trikasih Lembong will be promoting the ASEAN region as a key economic center of Asia as he accompanied President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) on a visit to the United States.

"This years roadshow is aimed at promoting ASEAN as Asias economic center and a key economic partner of the US," he said in a written statement received by ANTARA in Palm Springs, California, on Monday.

Minister Lembong will be attending the ASEAN Economic Ministers/United States Trade Representative (AEM-USTR) Consultations on February 17, followed by the roadshow of ASEANs economic ministers (AEM) in San Francisco on February 18.

The roadshow will be the third to be conducted by the AEM after similar events held in 2010 and 2012.
AEM Roadshow series of meetings will begin with a panel discussion on "Landscape of ASEAN in 2016 and the Vision for 2025," and will be held in coordination with the US-ASEAN Business Council.

The meeting will explain to the American businessmen certain issues, especially about trade and investment priorities within the established scheme of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) 2025.

It will be also addressing sub-regional cooperation to support economic development in the region, AEC as a hub of global trade and investment, as well as comprehensive information for the US businessmen on ways to enter the ASEAN market.

AEM Roadshow will end on February 18 after visits to the Silver Spring Networks, Andreessen Horrowitz, Google, and Prospect Silicon Valley in Silicon Valley.

Besides Minister Lembong, a number of ASEAN economic ministers will participate in the roadshow, such as Brunei Darussalams Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Lim Jock Seng, Laos Minister of Industry and Trade Khemmani Pholsena and Cambodian Minister of Trade Sun Chantol.

In addition, Malaysian Minister of International Trade and Industry Dato Sri Mustapa Mohamed, Myanmars Minister for National Planning and Economic Development Kan Zaw, Thailands Minister of Trade Apiradi Tantraporn, Singapores Minister of State for Trade and Industry Koh Poh Koon and Secretary General of ASEAN Le Luong Minh will also participate.

Meanwhile, the Philippines and Vietnam were, respectively, represented by the deputy minister-level officials, namely the Philippines Secretary of Trade and Industry Adrian S Cristobal and Vietnams Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh.

USTR Ambassador Michael G Froman, along with the US-ASEAN Business Council will be accompanying the ASEANs economic ministers during all roadshow-related activities.

Furthermore, Trade Minister Thomas Lembong is also scheduled to attend the Caucus Meeting of ASEANs economic ministers on February 16.

On these occasions, he will explain his stance on becoming a digital economic power as it will really help to develop the national economy, especially small and medium enterprises (SME).

This issue, he stated, was the focus of discussions during the meeting of heads of states or government of ASEAN and the US on the first of US-ASEAN Summit in Sunnylands, Palm Springs, California, scheduled for February 15-16.

"On the first day of the meeting, the heads of states remained focused on a discussion about economic issues, especially access to technology and digital economy which can be very helpful to enhance the capabilities and competitiveness of SMEs in ASEAN," Lembong said.

For Indonesia, he explained, the issue was crucial to its economic development in order to improve the contribution of the SMEs to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

ASEAN encourages increased economic cooperation in the field of micro, small, and medium businesses, as well as the promotion of innovation and entrepreneurship, including the development of the digital economy in the ASEAN region.(WDY)