|
As declared in Kuala Lumpur on December 15, 1997, the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations (ASEAN) has a vision to achieve partnership in dynamic development which
will forge closer economic integration within ASEAN by the year 2020 (accelerated to
2015), which is more commonly known as `ASEAN Vision 2020'. Prior to that, economic
and financial integration has been on the agenda of discussion by the Southeast Asian
countries' policy makers and academics long before 1997, following the success of
European integration. Perhaps, the Asian Crisis 1997-98 hastened the need for stronger
economic cooperation, while the sentiments of `Asianization' and `Easternization' added
enthusiasm for regional integration among ASEAN and also East Asia. Nevertheless, the enthusiasm
and vision may not translate into reality. European
monetary and financial integration took
50 years to realize and after overcoming several obstacles, is still in progress. If ASEAN
is to emulate European Union integration path, the road ahead is even much harder to
navigate than the European nations. ASEAN might face the obstacle of unequal level of
economic development. For example, Singaporean economy might be too far ahead for any
potential integration compatibility with Laos, that might even face difficulties in managing its
own economic development. Incompatible political system is another major obstacle.
ASEAN politics ranges from full democracy to authoritarian rules, with some countries
currently facing domestic political instability. Furthermore, vast cultural differences among
ASEAN countries could be a difficult dimension to the integration process in ASEAN.
On ASEAN banking sector integration, the closest effort could be the commitments
on financial services under the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS), which
was officially initiated on December 15, 1995 during the
5th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok, Thailand. One of the AFAS objectives is to eliminate substantial restrictions on trade
in services among ASEAN countries. Therefore, AFAS also complements the establishment
of ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and ASEAN Vision 2020. Besides, two other objectives
of AFAS as stated in Article I of the agreement are, "to enhance cooperation in services
amongst Member States in order to improve the efficiency and competitiveness, diversify
production capacity and supply and distribution of services of their service suppliers within and
outside ASEAN" and "to liberalize trade in services by expanding the depth and scope of
liberalization beyond those undertaken by Member States under the
General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) with the aim to realizing a free trade area in services". The guidelines under
the agreement are divided into two categories, namely `market access' and `national
treatment' and four modes of services supply, which are `cross-border supply' (Mode 1),
`consumption abroad' (Mode 2), `commercial presence' (Mode 3), and `movement of natural
persons' (Mode 4). |
