Asean financial authorities to step up cooperation to support recovery and growth
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Indonesia's Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati at the Asean Finance Ministers' and Central Bank Governors' meeting in Nusa Dua, Bali on March 31.
PHOTO: AFP
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JAKARTA - Finance ministers and central bank governors from Asean vowed on Friday to strengthen their coordination on policies that support economic recovery, spur growth and increase financial stability in the region.
Some of the measures the ministers pledged to take include to use local currencies in cross-border trade and investments in Asean to enhance financial resilience, and expand cross-border payment connectivity among member states, Indonesian officials said after the meeting in Bali.
The meeting also discussed a proposal for greater collaboration between finance and health authorities to strengthen regional health capacity.
Indonesia’s Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said the bloc faces a “challenging global complex environment” that poses considerable downside risks from continuing high inflationary pressures, uncertainty over tensions in Europe, and recent banking crises that have hit institutions there and in the US.
“Nevertheless, Asean remains a bright spot and a place of stability in the global economy where the region offers promising prospects compared to a bleaker global outlook,” she said in a press briefing at the conclusion of the ninth Asean Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting. “This underlines the importance of strong collaboration and cooperation to contain the lingering risks that may pose threats to the regional economy.”
This emphasis on unity underscored the theme chosen by Indonesia, as chair of Asean this year, of “Asean matters: Epicentrum of growth”.
At the opening of Friday’s meeting, Dr Sri Mulyani noted that some financial institutions have projected a positive outlook for the region’s economy in 2023 and beyond. But she warned Asean members to remain vigilant and prepare themselves for external challenges that might trigger turbulence in the regional economy.
“We should keep updating our policies to respond to the dynamic situation. We should also not be complacent about the regional expected high economic growth,” said Dr Sri Mulyani, a former managing director and chief operating officer of the World Bank.
At the briefing, Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo said despite the various challenges, Asean is expected to grow 4.6 per cent in 2023 and 5.6 per cent in 2024. The key drivers of the economic expansion will be strong domestic consumption, intra-Asean trade and investment, and economic engagement with other countries, he added.
Dr Perry also said the regional payment system that five member states – Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand – had agreed on in 2022, will soon expand to include Vietnam. Cambodia, Laos and Brunei are developing their own instant payment system, he added.
Having the ease of using QR codes throughout Asean to make purchases would cater to the needs of domestic populations as well as tourists, and link small and medium-sized enterprises, thus supporting economic recovery, he noted.
Singapore and Malaysia on Friday announced the launch of cross-border QR code payment connectivity, which will allow customers of participating financial institutions to pay for products and services at merchants by scanning Nets and DuitNow QR codes.
Singapore Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong, tweeting on Friday about his meeting with Malaysian Deputy Finance Minister II Steven Sim, said: “Both countries share close people-to-people ties, and there is much we can cooperate on for the mutual benefit of our economies and our peoples.”
In a Facebook post on Friday night as the finance ministers and central bank governors wrapped up their session, Mr Wong said meetings such as this give countries the opportunities to deepen links within the region, as they work to “pivot Asean towards a more green and inclusive future”.
Mr Wong also met Vietnam Vice-Minister of Finance Vo Thanh Hung, Brunei Darussalam Minister of Economy and Finance II Dato Amin Liew Abdullah, and Asian Development Bank president Asakawa Masatsugu.
