ASEAN Information Infrastructure

ASEAN member states are at different stages of development in terms of their respective national information infrastructure with the more advanced economies having more established ICT infrastructure than others.  Liberalization of the ICT sector to attract foreign investors as well as establishment of legal framework are being carried out by the member states.

While information infrastructures at the national level are being developed and linked, efforts are underway to draw up a technical architecture to ensure the interoperability of infrastructure, systems and applications across ASEAN.  Before the end of 2002, ASEAN experts are expected to finalise the overall design principles of the technical architecture, network infrastructure, security infrastructure, e-payments infrastructure, and their respective services interoperability frameworks.

With a view to establishing a platform for Internet exchanges within ASEAN, an ASEAN Internet Service Provider (ISP) dialogue has been set up.  This process has endorsed the ASEAN Regional Internet Exchange project (ARIX) and the establishment of an ASEAN ISP Association (ARISPA).

e-Commerce

A Common Reference Framework for e-Commerce Legal Infrastructure has been published to assist those countries without e-commerce legislation in drafting their own.  An experts group on e-commerce legal infrastructure has been working on key issues relating to e-commerce legislation, such as the admissibility of evidence in court, cybercrime legislation, copyrights and trademarks protection.  Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand have already enacted e-commerce legislations.  

To harmonize technical standards and facilitate the cross-recognition of digital certificates, an e-ASEAN Certification Authority Forum, led by the private sector, has been set up in the region. The forum discussed ways to promote interoperability of regional certifications and accelerate the use of public key infrastructure applications. A Steering Committee has been set up to drive the forum�s agenda.  Discussions are also underway to establish an electronic payment standards and policy framework to facilitate secure regional electronic transactions, payments and settlements.

Liberalisation and Facilitation 

ICT-related services have been included in the third package of commitments in the negotiations under the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services.

The ASEAN Economic Ministers Meeting in September 2001 endorsed the indicative list of ICT products from Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, whose duties would be eliminated between 2003 and 2005.  They also endorsed the list of ICT products from Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam, whose duties would be eliminated between 2008 and 2010. 

Under the e-ASEAN Framework Agreement, member countries have committed to free up their ICT sectors by granting national treatment to ASEAN investors in ICT products.  This commitment is complemented by the ASEAN Investment Area Framework Agreement that accords ASEAN investors� national treatment in services incidental to the ICT manufacturing sector.   

 The ASEAN Mutual Recognition Arrangement for Telecommunications Equipment and the ASEAN MRA for Electrical and Electronic Equipment are expected to facilitate the movement of ICT goods within the ASEAN region.

Capacity Building and e-Society 

To establish a comprehensive understanding of the region�s preparedness to compete in the global networked economy, an ASEAN e-Readiness Assessment has been undertaken. The e-ASEAN Readiness Guide has been developed as a regional indicator to monitor the progress and effectiveness of the e-ASEAN activities and identify gaps in the region that need to be addressed.

The project will automate the data compilation and analysis process by member countries towards a self-assessment model and allow an accurate e-readiness index to be produced on a yearly basis. The key recommendations of the study have been endorsed by the economic ministers and presented to the leaders.

To promote IT awareness, IT road shows were held in the Philippines and Cambodia, while an e-ASEAN Business Forum and an e-ASEAN Industry Dialogue were conducted in Brunei Darussalam, Myanmar and Singapore.  Thailand conducted a number of info-sharing seminars on e-commerce applications to assist member states� adoption of these technologies.  The ASEAN School Net Project has been implemented with the aim of reducing the digital divide between the urban and rural areas.

e-Government 

An ASEAN e-Government Initiative is being developed to accelerate the adoption of ICT in governance and public services, including awareness and capacity-building of senior government officials, research and development in regional e-government applications, and showcasing best practices from within as well as outside the region for benchmarking.

ASEAN is exploring inter-country government online cooperation and transactions.  The Malaysian and Singapore Home Ministries have been holding discussions on the usage of a common e-passport and smart card system to facilitate the movement of citizens between the two countries.  Discussions are also underway on the interoperability issues between Singapore�s TradeNet and Malaysia�s DagangNet Trade Facilitation System.  Thailand also organized the ASEAN e-Farmers Workshop on 22-23 May 2002 in Bangkok.

e-ASEAN Pilot Projects

The e-ASEAN Task Force has approved two batches of e-ASEAN pilot projects, which aim to demonstrate the potential and benefits of using ICT by ASEAN companies, particularly small and medium enterprises, and individual entrepreneurs.  Pilot projects are also expected to promote skills building and to increase awareness of and trust in the Internet.  A total of 30 projects are on-going.  Information on the pilot projects and other activities of the e-ASEAN Task Force can be found at http://www.e-aseantf.org. 

ASEAN e-Farmers

In February 2002, ASEAN launched the ASEAN e-Farmers and Agritani e-hub (www.agritani.net) to provide e-marketplace solutions for ASEAN farmers including financial services, transportation, shipping and warehousing. An e-ASEAN endorsed pilot project, the main objective is to provide ASEAN farmers with market information as well as direct market access via an internet based trading e-hub. This initiative is expected to benefit more than 200 million farmers and their dependents and improve the efficiency of the agriculture trading supply chain.  ASEAN e-Farmers is one of the flagship projects initiated as a result of the e-ASEAN Framework Agreement adopted in November 2000 by the ASEAN leaders.  The e-hub will provide a comprehensive set of trading services to buyers and suppliers within ASEAN and beyond.  Indonesia�s Jambi Province is the first beneficiary of the pilot launch of the e-Farmers initiative.  Thailand also organized the ASEAN e-Farmers Workshop on 22-23 May 2002 in Bangkok. Similar workshops will be organized in the CLMV countries in the second half of 2002.