Success of AEC will be an important premise to bring ASEAN’s status and Vietnam to a new height. 

The process of AEC formation

AEC is one of the three key pillars of ASEAN Community including ASEAN Political- Security Community (APSC), ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and ASEAN Socio- Cultural Community (ASCC), under the roadmap and Master Plan of ASEAN Community Establishment in 2015.

October 2003, at the 9^th ASEAN Summit in Bali, Indonesia, heads of states of ASEAN members agreed the establishment of ASEAN Community in 2020 based on the plan to connect 12 priority sectors which brought ASEAN competitive advantages including agro-based products, wood-based products, textiles and apparels, electronics, rubber-based products, automotives, footwear, tourism, air transport, fisheries, healthcare and logistics.

In the context of global rapid changes, January 2007, the 12^th ASEAN Summit in Cebu, Philippine determined to shorten the roadmap of ASEAN Community establishment and schedule to launch in 2015.  The AEC Master Plan was worked out in January 2008 at the 13^th ASEAN Summit in Singapore aimed to realize AEC by 2015.

According to the Plan, from 2015, AEC will become a single market and integrated production base. Such market will bring the shared advantages of ASEAN into full play to gradually build up a dynamic and highly competitive region worldwide and bring common prosperity to the people and ASEAN member countries.

Goods, service, capital, technology and skilled labour can move freely within ASEAN without any  barriers or inequality. AEC can create a chain link among enterprises in ASEAN contributing to building competitive capacity of ASEAN with the globe, narrowing poverty and development gaps and accelerate social stability.

The AEC strategic roadmap and Master Plan outlined hundreds of measures in various sectors from tax and tariff, non-tariff measures, customs procedures, competition policies, intelligence property, service and investment to environmental issues, labour and human resources development.

One remarkable achievement in AEC establishment is that ASEAN succeeded in reducing tax rates to 0 - 5% for listed goods from 2010 for 6 initial members (Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines and Brunei) and from 2015 for 4 new members (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar) which created an open market without tariff barriers.

AESEAN countries achieved 82.1% of their priority targets outlined in 2013 under Phnom Penh Agenda 2012 for AEC Building in 2015. In commodity trading, ASEAN removed import taxes for average 89% tariff lines to 0%.

Other contents of cooperation like removing non-tariff barriers, piloting project on certification of origin, ASEAN commercial data base, one-stop-shop customs mechanism, customs transit system and harmonization of the standards, etc, have reached positive progresses. To reach AEC, it is essential to pay attention to such issues as cooperation in intelligence property, competition, consumer protection, connection, infrastructure development, medium and small enterprises and the like because public-private partnership is very important to four pillars of AEC formation.

Thus, ASEAN always pay attention to opinions of business community in the region through ASEAN- United States Summit, dialogues between ministers and ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ABAC) and EU- ASEAN Business Council (AEBC).
Besides, to create a coherent economic linkage, ASEAN is making efforts in fulfilling the commitments within AEC establishment framework and strengthening competition capacity of its member economies. AEC needs to become a central circle to connect ASEAN member economies with their partners within free trade agreements (FTAs) and ASEAN+1.

Strengthening international economic integration with formation of ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is a practical orientation for a strong ASEAN Community. Hence, benefits of international economic integration and further integration within ASEAN will not only depend on leading roles of the States, but the key factor for success is active participation of business community. Success of AEC will be an important premise to bring ASEAN’s role to a new height.

Vietnam in AEC integration process

Proactive integration into ASEAN region has been a coherent policy of Vietnam for the past years which is proved in Vietnam’s recognition of ASEAN as its leading important partner. In line with the United States and European Union (EU), ASEAN is an important export market to Vietnam’s enterprises.

Over the past decade, Vietnam- ASEAN trading turnover has been fourfold, from about 9 billion US dollars in 2003 to nearly 40 billion US dollars in 2013. In recent years, ASEAN is always in the top export markets of Vietnam.

In 2013, ASEAN is the third largest export market of Vietnam, after the US and EU, with a turnover of 18.47 billion US dollars, increased by 4.4 percent compared to the previous year. In terms of investment, the projects from ASEAN or via ASEAN are on the rise. At the same time, ASEAN is also a major market for Vietnamese investors.

AEC commitments have been fulfilled by ASEAN member countries. Vietnam is the second country fulfilling these commitments, after Singapore.

Besides, Vietnam is the leading country in reducing tariff lines to 0%. By 2015, about 90% of Vietnam’s tariff lines were removed to 0% and Vietnam is striving to reduce 7% of other tariff lines to 0% by 2018. Obviously, despite the hard condition and the big gaps between Vietnam and the six ASEAN’s initial members, with great efforts and strong determination for further integration into regional and international economy, Vietnam has surmounted obstacles to get high results and to be highly appreciated by other ASEAN countries.

In addition, e-customs is an important content to get the above targets. Implementation of e-customs procedures in Vietnam has reached some targets as shortening clearance time and reducing written declarations. Vietnam is on the track of building National Single Window (VNSW) to facilitate commerce.
Vietnam is also making efforts in simplifying certificate systems including export and import certificates, C/O, sanitary quarantine certificate and food safety certificate.

These efforts are presented with eCoSys and automatic import licensing. Aimed to free services, Vietnam is carrying out amendment of some related laws such as the Law of Investment, Law of Commerce, Business Law and issuance of many decrees and instruction document under these Laws.
For good implementation of the two AEC’s pillars, Vietnam amended and issued new policies to fulfil the commitments of each sector, particularly service and distribution sector, banking, insurance, stock market and telecommunication to comply with the commitments in ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS) and General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) as well.

Regarding priority sectors including healthcare, tourism, logistics, e-ASEAN and airline, Vietnam has fulfilled the commitments and proactively participated in related agreements. Currently, together with Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand, Vietnam is evaluated as one of the countries having rather comprehensive Law on competition which can be applied in the whole economy and having supervision agencies for implementation of this Law.

Source: asean.vietnam.vn

Ngoc Quyen (translated)