From October 24 to 27, Malaysia organized two back-to-back summits in Kuala Lumpur that focused on inclusive growth and investment. The ASEAN Inclusive Growth Summit 2025 focused on the issues on innovation, technology, financial inclusion, data, and artificial intelligence (AI). This was followed by the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit (ABIS) that was attended by world leaders from across the Global South and the Global North. The summit focused on financial markets, capital markets, geo politics and trade, philanthropy, sustainability, circular economy, energy transition, digital economy, MSMEs, e-commerce and artificial intelligence.
The message from ASEAN was strong and clear -- it wants to become a global powerhouse sitting next to the United States of America and China.
The ASEAN economy is projected to reach $4.5 trillion by 2030. Together, it will be the world’s fourth largest economy. By 2030, the middle income class is expected to be about 60% of the population and by 2035, ASEAN will be home to 3.2 billion of the world’s 5 billion middle-class consumers.
Like Bangladesh, the ASEAN economies also rely heavily on SMEs. About 45% of the ASEAN GDP is contributed by the SMEs and these SMEs also employ 65% of the work force. In the two summits the ASEAN leaders made their ambitions clear and the world leaders echoed the ASEAN aspiration.
ASEAN wants to reduce dependence on China and the US. New trade corridors and investment corridors are being explored between the ASEAN countries. It also wants to boost their SMEs through artificial intelligence, technology innovation, access to capital and blended finance and alternative finance. The region wants to emerge as the global centre for South-to-South Economic Cooperation. They are building the ASEAN Power Grid (APG) which will cost approximately $800 billion. But by the time it is in full operations, it will contribute to regional energy security, sustainability, and affordability.
I was perhaps the sole participant in the ABIS and I was one of the two Bangladeshi delegates in the inclusive growth summit. I listened to the speakers and my heart pumped up with aspirations but my mind also made me deeply cautious about where Bangladesh stands.
Between the ASEAN economies, they mostly trade intermediate goods. They want to shift to value-added goods. ASEAN economies are looking at capital flow between the economies. There is also interoperability in digital finance. A tourist from Cambodia can now visit Vietnam and pay using a QR code payment system as part of the ASEAN Local Currency Transaction (LCT) framework.
Google is investing heavily with its AI technologies to boost ASEAN agriculture. TikTok is supporting the MSMEs to launch and grow TikTok shops through programs like ASEAN Soar Together. Philanthropic organizations of family-owned businesses, for example the Ayala Foundation in the Philippines are spending big in education and community leadership.
In the fireside chat, the President of the Republic of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa jokingly said that “he smells money in the room.” It is not only the leaders from the Global South who are looking for greater ties with ASEAN, the Global North too is eying at opportunities. Canada is interested in being part of the ASEAN free trade bloc.
The world is looking towards new trade partners, new sectors. Collaboration, cooperation, and partnerships are put at the centre of this new world order as these countries and regions push forward towards sustaining their growth. Where do we stand amidst all of it?
During the ASEAN Summits and also after returning to Dhaka, I spoke with many in our economist fraternity. I asked, if we are not part of a strategic trade bloc, then how are we going to sustain our economic growth. And does this not mean that our comparative advantages in global trade is at risk of diminishing fast due to the advancements in the other countries and regions?
A friend who has been living and working in the ASEAN region for the last 15 years in the role of a corporate banker said that Bangladesh does not share the ASEAN values. What are the ASEAN values I asked. He said they work hard, complain less, follow the law, love to make money, and trust the government to take care of their businesses and homes. My friend also said that they have always been more global than us. It is therefore easier for them to open up to cooperation.
All of these made me reflect deeply. It is evident that Bangladesh cannot afford to look away from ASEAN. We have to follow their strategies closely and follow their direction. This will help us to prepare our own growth strategies -- the directions that we need follow include:
- Putting green growth, circularity, and sustainability at the heart.
- Leveraging digitization, digital advancements, AI, and technology innovation for inclusive growth and to support the SMEs to add more value and contribution to GDP.
- Opening up to the Global South economies, especially in Africa and looking for bilateral trade agreements, even with ASEAN nations and nations such as Canada or regions such as the EU who are searching for new trade partners for sectors like renewable energy
- Review our capital markets and investment policies and make them more friendly for both international and local investors.
If we fail to seal the deal and seal the opportunity of the time, the dream of building a trillion dollar economy in the next decade or so will hardly materialize.
Md Rubaiyath Sarwar is Managing Director, Innovision Consulting.
