On January 22, Ambassador Brian McFeeters had the opportunity to sit down with Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez to discuss Manila’s ASEAN Chairship this year, including what success looks like, key priorities shaping the agenda, and areas of focus for the Chairship. Watch the full episode here, along with the transcript.
Thursday, January 22, 2026
SPEAKERS
Amb. McFeeters and Amb. Romualdez
Amb. McFeeters 00:00
Good afternoon, Ambassador Romualdez. We're delighted to have you here at the ASEAN Business Council headquarters in Washington. We just had a meeting with our member companies, and I'm delighted you have a few minutes to talk again. We're of course interested in the Philippines as a major ASEAN partner. You're the second biggest population of rapid economic growth. This year, we're particularly interested because you're the chair of ASEAN- busy year. I think it would be of interest to hear what that means to you. What are the big picture items that the Philippines is trying to accomplish during this chairship year?
Amb. Romualdez 00:36
Well, first of all, thank you very much, Ambassador Brian, for inviting me to speak to your members and have this opportunity to have this podcast with you. I think for the Philippines, this is really an opportunity for us to be able to take the lead on where we want to take ASEAN since it started over 60 years ago. I think that there's an opportunity for President Marcos to be able to bring out what ASEAN centrality is all about and make ASEAN a strong force in the Asian region. As I mentioned, one of our main goals is to have cooperation in the economic sphere- that is a clear indication of how important. The ASEAN is the fastest growing region in the world today, and the opportunities are much greater than it ever was. I think that in spite of all the challenges that many of our member states face in terms of peace and security, these are all going to fall into place for as long as there is a good economic program that will make ASEAN a strong association of nations.
Amb. McFeeters 01:59
I know that the chairship involves a lot more than economics, but you're here at an economic institution. I think it would be helpful to hear what goes into the economic pillar. What are the big picture items? I'm sure there's something digital and some other topics, but maybe just kind of top-level topics. I think our companies would be interested in all of them.
Amb. Romualdez 02:21
Well, like I said, one of the commitments that's been made most specifically for the United States, your USSA and Business Council, is that it's a long-term commitment for peace and stability in the region. Therefore, there's a lot of peripheral businesses that go with that one, aside from the fact that there's that commitment. We would like to have a defense industrial base, and that defense industrial base will definitely translate into more opportunities for American businesses to come in- not only the Philippines, but even in the Asian region as well in terms of supply chains and necessary things that would be able to help in securing a better and more stable region. I think that there's a lot of funding that will take place in terms of that industrial base and even in the digital space, even in the space of manufacturing of not only drones or ammunition. There's a lot of things that go with it. The opportunities are just vast.
Amb. McFeeters 03:38
I know the Philippines is the main partner, but that's across ASEAN generally. That's something that our companies are interested in. We have companies probably in all of the major sectors. Digital is such a priority. What are the big picture items, digitally speaking, for the chairship?
Amb. Romualdez 03:59
Well, I think that for the digital side, obviously, we're aiming to complete all the negotiations on the signing of the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement, which is what we call the DEFA. It's a 2026 DEFA which will be the first regional-wide digital economy arrangement. We're covering data flows, cyber security, e-payments, blockchain, AI, and so forth and so on. That is something that I think is part of the program of what we call the acceleration of digital transformation in the ASEAN region. Again, that's an opportunity that would be good for many companies in that sphere. This will connect the ASEAN-based business closer together, including, most notably, of course, the MSMEs, which is for the regional and global markets.
Amb. McFeeters 05:13
I think our companies see huge potential in DEFA. I've seen estimates that the digital market in ASEAN is already growing at this incredible rate, but it could grow twice as fast if DEFA really comes in. It could be a $2 or $3 trillion market. It's just amazing when you see the estimate. I think the Philippines chairship is critical, because this is when you actually launch it. Up until now, it's been on paper, but it has to be launched. I would be interested to hear more broadly about MSMEs. There's always been interest on the part of US-ASEAN Business Council members to help with MSMEs- to help that development. What are the new ideas that the Philippines has in that area?
Amb. Romualdez 05:55
Well, I think the organization that I mentioned, one of our business members, has been very active on this one and has put together a program that will concentrate on SMEs, precisely. I think that will be an area where there'll be a lot of opportunities because we obviously have a lot of these small companies that are startup companies that are involved in the region. It's an opportunity that will be open for companies.
Amb. McFeeters 06:49
You mentioned ASEAN centrality. There's competition between the US and China over influence in ASEAN. Some of our high-tech companies are concerned that China is kind of getting a leg up, and maybe China doesn't care as much about the rules. How can US companies continue to be competitive vis-a-vis China in ASEAN?
Amb. Romualdez 07:10
I think that the more they work with us within the same region, the better they have chances of being able to counter that particular issue in China, because, as I said, we're a region that is 615 million and the fastest growing region in the world. I think that if you work with us, which you already are, it will probably be the best way to be able to leverage and be able to counter whatever China's doing.
Amb. McFeeters 07:50
I wonder, as one of the most experienced ambassadors in Washington, have you over your time serving in Washington, seen things that businesses do right when they come to the Government of the Philippines and things that businesses do wrong? Any tips we could give our members on how to how to be effective?
Amb. Romualdez 08:07
Well, I think generally, we have really no real problem in terms of businesses coming into the Philippines. We do our best to try to make it easier for them. But as you know, in any kind of government, government regulations and rules, there are things that we need to be able to do to change if we need to or skew in such a way that it fits into something- for instance on data localization, which is really a big issue. I know that there are many companies in the Philippines that believe that this should be the case, but if we are to open up our country for investments, obviously we need to be sure that our international partners are also going to be happy with it. So we're finding ways and means to be able to come up with the right kind of rules and regulations to take care of that issue. I think that working with partners with the US- ASEAN Business Council is very important for us because we get the feedback and we don't have any problem with companies or organizations telling us this is what you need to do if you want to have more business. We're very open for any kind of suggestion to make things better.
Amb. McFeeters 09:32
I think the fact that the Philippines has such close and maybe even closer relations with the US government really helps us a lot. I find that US businesses, whenever there's a US government project with a foreign government, they want to be part of it. You mentioned the defense sector. Are there any other areas where the US government is cooperating with Philippines where businesses should maybe go along?
Amb. Romualdez 09:55
As you just mentioned on digital infrastructure, for instance, or anything that has to do with modernization, or AI, or whatever it is, we're working closely on the AI export plan. In the energy sector, we have a lot of requirements, and we want to work closely with the United States. Without being too strong or trying to sell our country, the fact of the matter is that the relationship we have the United States is one you can't find anywhere else outside the Asian region. The Philippines is your best partner, no matter which way you want to go. There are some problems that you may face, but at the end of the day, because of that close relationship, it's like you're doing business in your own country because we have the ASEAN. The system that we follow is similar to yours. As I said, if it's something that we can fix, we are very happy to do it, most especially with US companies.
Amb. McFeeters 11:02
I've certainly experienced that. I spent a couple years out in the region and went to Manila a lot of times for our business missions, both generally and for agriculture and defense. I find that senior Philippine government officials always have a lot of time for us, and we can really go into depth. I also want to say that now that I'm back on the Washington side, US-ASEAN Business Council has the ability to move our agenda ahead by working with the embassies, including yours. I just want to thank you in the context of this interview for the fact that we can work it on both sides. We can work issues in Manila and across the Philippines, and then we can work them with you here in Washington, so thanks to you and your team.
Amb. Romualdez 11:43
Like I said we are a country that has always welcomed visitors, most especially from the United States, and businesses, most especially from the United States. It's like you can make that your second home.
Amb. McFeeters 12:01
I think many companies appreciate that. Ambassador, I want to thank you for this opportunity.
Amb. Romualdez 12:06
Thank you very much, Ambassador.
Amb. McFeeters 12:07
Good luck to you.
