Private sector plays key role in ASEAN econ dev’t: Myanmar leader

FILE: Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar (Photo: Aung San Suu Kyi/Facebook)

MANILA — Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Sunday underscored the key role of the private sector in the economic development and regional integration of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members.

Suu Kyi, State Counsellor and Union Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, said this is important especially as ASEAN economies have grown tremendously in recent decades, becoming the seventh largest economy in the world.

During the opening of the three-day ASEAN Business and Investment Summit (ABIS) 2017 at the Solaire Resort and Casino in Paranaque City Sunday, she said ASEAN’s annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth has been averaging five to 10 percent since 2004, outpacing that of other regions.

Suu Kyi noted that the private sector can strengthen competition and create favorable predictable and friendly investment climate in the region.

She added various mechanisms may include public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement which “ensures that the public sector plays an important role in developing major hard and soft infrastructure projects”.

Meanwhile, ABIS is the culminating event of the year organized by the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ABAC) that highlights the multichannel connectivity, infrastructure development, issues that affect businesses and other trendsetting topics that have been decisive and priority concerns of the leaders today.

With the theme World Leaders’ Roadmap Towards Prosperity for All, the event promotes dialogue among the private sector with the region’s leaders including Heads of State, Ministers of ASEAN member states and ASEAN partners.