2015 Southeast Asia Regional Forum

The 2015 OECD Southeast Asia Regional Forum, which took place 24-25 March in Jakarta, Indonesia, brought together policy-makers from Southeast Asia and OECD member countries, international and regional organisations, experts and business representatives.

The Forum also marked the inauguration of the OECD’s new Southeast Asia Office, in Jakarta. The Office will serve as a platform for boosting OECD work in the region and enabling the Organisation to collaborate more closely with counterparts in Indonesia and across Southeast Asia.

The discussions fed into the AEC and post-2015 agenda preparation process. In particular, participants exchanged views on how the policy focus of the Programme can further support this integration process.

>> Opening remarks by Angel Gurria, OECD Secretary-General

>> Press release

>> Presentation of the OECD Southeast Asia Office in Jakarta (PDF)

Meeting documents

Agenda: OECD Southeast Asia Regional Forum

Agenda: OECD Southeast Asia Gender Initiative Meeting

Agenda: Second Business Network Meeting of the Southeast Asia Regional Programme

Active with Indonesia 2018

Important areas for policy action identified are linked with the topics of the Programme's six Regional Policy Networks detailed below:

Session 1, Macro-economic perspectives and key structural policy challenges in ASEAN

This session centred on the outlook for the Southeast Asian economies and the macroeconomic and medium-term structural policy challenges they face. Regional growth prospects look favourable overall (growth will average 5.6% in 2015-19, according to the Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India 2015), but external and domestic risks remain.

‌

Session 2: People-centred regional integration in Southeast Asia

Session 2 explored the broader social and economic effects and risks of regional integration. A tangible concern among ASEAN policy-makers is the cost of adjusting to increased levels of competition, which will inevitably lead to the decline of less competitive sectors--creating risks for increased inequality in the process.

Session 3: Regional integration and openness

The Session 3, Regional integration and openness, explored how the region could continue to work to achieve the objectives embedded in the AEC. A range of formal and informal barriers to trade and investment persist, ranging from different product regulations to sectoral restrictions barring foreign companies from key sectors of the economy.

Session 4: Productivity-enhancing policies supporting regional integration

Finally, Session 4, Productivity-enhancing policies supporting regional integration, looked at which policies, aimed at supporting the private sector and counteracting the structural difficulties outlined in session 1, could be designed, implemented, and monitored more efficiently.

About the Programme

The OECD Southeast Asia Regional Programme aims to foster the exchange of good practices and mutual learning among policy makers in OECD and Southeast Asian countries. The structure is designed to encourage a systematic exchange of experience to develop common solutions to regional and global challenges.

It is comprised of six Regional Policy Networks (RPNs) that builds on the work of substantive OECD directorates and Southeast Asian bodies and dialogue processes in the areas of: taxation, good regulatory practices, investment policy and promotion, education and skills development, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and public-private partnerships (PPPs) to support connectivity for infrastructure development. Initiatives are also carried out on trade, innovation and gender.