Topic: ASEAN’s Role in Regional Economic Integration

1. Background and general information of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) On 8 August 1967, in Bangkok, five governments in Southeast Asia established a political and economic organization, namely the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), with preliminary concerns about Communist intrusion among the region. The founding members comprise of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. ASEAN, later, aimed to increase the economic growth, social progress, and cultural development in the region, and promoting regional peace and stability under the motto “One Vision, One Identity, One Community.” ASEAN was opened for participation by all states in the Southeast Asian region sharing the same aims, principals and purposes. Therefore, Brunei Darussalam joined on 8 January 1984, Vietnam on 28 July 1995, Laos and Myanmar on 23 July 1997, and Cambodia on 30 April 1999. ASEAN, recently, consists of 10 member states, is seen as a successful model for developing countries that promote peace, stability and integration. ASEAN covers a land area of 4.46 million square kilometers, which is 3% of the total land area of Earth, and has a population approximately 600 million people, which is 8.8% of the world’s population. The sea area of ASEAN is about three times larger than its land counterpart. In 2011, ASEAN combined nominal GDP had growth to US$ 2.07 trillion, with the average per capital income of US$3,416 a year. In 2010, intra-ASEAN trade was 25.4% which was slightly higher than 24.5% in 2009. Meanwhile, extra- ASEAN trade in the year 2010 was 74.6% which grew by 31.5% comparing to the 2008 which is the recession global period. Moreover, ASEAN trade reached US$2.0 trillion in 2010, an increase by 33.1%, owning to expansion in trade with both intra-ASEAN and extra-ASEAN