Nazir Razak: ASEAN must integrate to excel in Fourth Industrial Revolution

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) must act at a regional level to “help its businesses navigate the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” Nazir Razak, Chairman of CIMB Group, said in a speech at Asia House.

Addressing an audience of diplomats, business leaders and the media, Mr Razak emphasised the opportunities arising for ASEAN as digitalisation transforms global trade and commerce.

But he called for ASEAN’s Secretariat to be “reinforced,” in order to capitalise on these opportunities.

It is time to “turn the Secretariat into a platform organisation and become the ‘operating system’ for regional integration,” he said.

ASEAN members have responded to the dramatic shifts in tech on a national level, Mr Razak acknowledged, citing Malaysia’s Digital Free Trade Zone, Singapore’s Smart Nation plan, Thailand 4.0, and, most recently, Making Indonesia 4.0.

But individual efforts are “not enough,” he argued. “The Fourth Industrial Revolution does not recognise national borders and some of its greatest impacts will play out at a regional scale.”

A regional response is therefore required.

“ASEAN needs a 4.0 plan to strategise how to defend and capture opportunities as well as address challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution at the regional level,” he said, outlining five key action areas; data sharing, trade and manufacturing, e-commerce, labour and entrepreneurship.

Speaking during the UK launch of the Asian Development Bank’s Asian Development Outlook report – focusing on technology and jobs – Mr Razak captured the pressing importance of the rapid digitalisation of global trade, and the transformation this is driving in the world economy.

There’s no time for complacency.

“We have already seen start-ups becoming giant businesses and giants becoming dinosaurs at incredible speed,” he said. “Endangered most are those who choose to do nothing.”

Read Nazir Razak’s full speech – ‘ASEAN and the Fourth Industrial Revolution’