00:01Excellencies, distinguished colleagues, members of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council, good
00:07afternoon. I welcome you all to the ASEAN Leaders Interface with the ASEAN Business Advisory
00:13Council. Our meeting today is an opportunity to hear directly from our partners in ASEAN's
00:19business community. In a year marked by geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions,
00:25and rapid technological change, ASEAN must work together to strengthen our economies and protect
00:31the livelihoods and well-being of our peoples. The ASEAN BAT plays an important role in this effort
00:38by bringing business and government together. They bring an important perspective to ASEAN
00:45community building that governments do not always see from the negotiating table. The cost of doing
00:50business across borders, the difficulty of accessing new markets, and the gap between what our agreements
00:57promise and what businesses actually experience. ASEAN has invested considerable effort in negotiating
01:05trade agreements, opening markets, and establishing common frameworks. These efforts will deliver their
01:12full value when businesses, particularly our MSMEs, can use them to expand, invest, and compete across the
01:21region. Our task today is to listen to one another and to identify where government and business can work
01:29more closely together. We need your views on the barriers that remain and the steps that we can take to
01:35address them. Your recommendations must also receive proper consideration and clear follow-through within
01:42ASEAN. I look forward to an exchange guided by the ASEAN BAT's priorities of people, planet, platform,
01:50and productivity. From expanding opportunities for our entrepreneurs and workers to strengthening
01:57food and energy, food and energy security, advancing digital transformation, and growing our industries,
02:04we have much more work to do together. As we pursue the ASEAN Community Vision 2045,
02:12let us ensure that deeper integration creates opportunities for businesses of all sizes and improves
02:19the lives of our people. Thank you, and I look forward to a productive discussion.
