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(Vientiane) - Facilitating e-Commerce, tackling illicit trade and counterfeits, and industry participation in Mutual Recognition Agreements for Authorized Economic Operators were primary areas of discussion between the Council-led delegation of U.S. businesses and ASEAN Customs officials during the Council’s annual mission to the ASEAN Customs Directors General Meeting in Vientiane, Laos. The Mission, from June 11-12, brought top executives from 9 U.S. companies to meet with officials from all 10 ASEAN member states.
(Washington, DC) - The Board of Directors, members and staff of the US-ASEAN Business Council extend condolences to the people of Indonesia and the Yudhoyono family on the passing of former First Lady Kristiani Herrawati Yudhoyono on June 1 after a four-month battle with leukemia.
“On behalf of the US-ASEAN Business Council, I send heartfelt condolences to former President Yudhoyono, the Yudhoyono family and the people of Indonesia,” said Alexander C. Feldman, President and CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council. “I am deeply saddened to learn of this loss of the former First Lady.”
(Washington, DC) - The Board of Directors, members and staff of the US-ASEAN Business Council extend condolences to the people of the Kingdom of Thailand and Tinsulanonda family on the passing of former Thai Prime Minister and Chairman of the Privy Council, Prem Tinsulanonda on May 26 at age 98.
“Over many decades, Prem Tinsulanonda was an important hand in Thailand’s ongoing prosperity and stability,” said Alexander C. Feldman, President and CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council. “I am saddened by this loss and express my sympathies during this time of mourning.”
(Singapore) - The US-ASEAN Business Council (US-ABC) and the Asia Internet Coalition (AIC) today hosted the first industry-led 2019 ASEAN Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue in Singapore, bringing together key stakeholders, including industry and regulators, to discuss the future of Over-the-Top (OTT) services and its contributing role to the growth of the ASEAN digital economy.
(Singapore) – The Council, during this year’s Singapore Business Mission, was among the first business groups to meet members of the Singapore cabinet following the cabinet reshuffle announced on April 23. This year’s business mission also celebrates the 15th anniversary of the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement which first came into force January 1, 2004.
From May 7-9, the Council-led delegation of 18 leading U.S. firms met with the Government of Singapore to discuss key economic policy and connectivity goals after its 2018 ASEAN Chairmanship, with a focus on Singapore’s Smart Nation initiative.
The delegation of U.S. firms expressed support for Singapore’s development of a strong digital infrastructure, enabling the goal outlined in its 2019 Budget of becoming a global node of Technology, Innovation and Enterprise.
(Manila) – More than 165 owners and executives of travel and tourism small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from Manila and surrounding cities participated in a full-day workshop on May 3 titled, “Strengthening a Sustainable Tourism Model for SMEs in Digital Transformation.” The workshop was a joint initiative of the US-ASEAN Business Council, the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) with support from the Philippine Trade Training Centre (PTTC), the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) and the Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc. (PHILEXPORT).
(Washington, DC) - The Board of Directors, members and staff of the US-ASEAN Business Council convey deepest condolences to the Lugar family and the ASEAN community on the passing on April 28 of the Honorable Richard Lugar, senior Senator from Indiana.
“I am saddened to learn of this loss of a gifted leader and foreign policy expert,” said Alexander C. Feldman, President and CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council. “Senator Lugar, in his decades of prolific public service, was also a global statesman who leaves a legacy of a safer world with his accomplishments in nuclear nonproliferation, and in ASEAN, a particularly important mark on the U.S.-Philippine relationship.”
Notably, Senator Lugar, as head a U.S. Congressional delegation, observed the 1986 Philippine presidential election and took a firm stance on his view that new elections should be held which has been noted as saving the U.S.-Philippine relationship by the Associated Press.
(Nha Trang) - While joining the 7th ASEAN Coordinating Committee on Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (ACCMSME) Meeting, the US-ASEAN Business Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Philippines Department of Trade and Industry and the Philippine Trade Training Centre on April 24 to formalize collaboration for the ASEAN SME Academy, an online resource platform for ASEAN MSMEs, which first launched in 2016.
“This occasion marks an important milestone of our partnership in utilizing the ASEAN SME Academy,” said Ambassador Michael W. Michalak, Senior Vice President and Regional Managing Director at the US-ASEAN Business Council. “The fourth industrial revolution brings about challenges for small and medium-sized businesses, but also provides huge benefits if SMEs can embrace it. One way to do so is by empowering them through the ASEAN SME Academy.”
(Washington, DC) - The Board of Directors, members and staff of the US-ASEAN Business Council offer sincere condolences to the Severino family, the ASEAN community, and the Government and people of the Philippines on the passing of Ambassador Rodolfo C. Severino Jr., who served as Secretary General of ASEAN from 1998 - 2002. Ambassador Severino passed at age 82 on April 19, 2019.
“I am saddened to learn of this great loss to the ASEAN Community and the Philippines,” said Alexander C. Feldman, President and CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council. “Ambassador Severino saw ASEAN through to the new millennium, and his contributions to both his country and ASEAN are admirable and impressive. Having been Secretary General of ASEAN through the peak of the Asian financial crisis, Ambassador Severino leaves an important legacy for a resilient, prosperous and peaceful region.”
(Washington, DC) – Today, the US-ASEAN Business Council celebrated both the start of H.E. Mahendra Siregar’s tenure in Washington, D.C. as Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to the United States, and successful completion of Indonesia’s April 17 election, where nearly 155 million people, or almost 81 percent of the eligible population, voted simultaneously for the first time for five different levels of government, including for positions of the President and in national Parliament.