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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is now officially part of the historic Regional Comprehensive Economic Association (RCEP) along with 14 other RCEP participating countries.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali, who signed the RCEP agreement last Sunday on behalf of Malaysia as Minister of International Trade and Industry, said the pact was the highest point at the 37th Asean Summit virtually hosted by Vietnam.
The signing was witnessed by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
“This partnership marks the merger of existing agreements between ASEAN and individual free trade agreement (NAFTA) partners, making RCEP the largest NAFTA in the world covering nearly a third of the world’s population and will contribute to a third of the world’s total domestic product (GDP) ”, said Azmin.
“The economic recovery of the region after the pandemic was high on the agenda and was widely debated both at the level of ASEAN leaders and ASEAN finance ministers,” he said.
The RCEP is an initiative promoted by Asean that aims to economically integrate the 16 countries of Asia and Oceania.
The leaders of the participating RCEP countries agreed that the partnership will involve a broader and deeper commitment to significant improvements over the existing ASEAN FTAs and Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEP).
“Throughout the meetings, Malaysia reinforced our commitment to strengthen a stronger partnership with the other ASEAN member states, to ensure a sustainable economic recovery in the region.
“Now, more than ever, there is a great need to intensify trade and investment within ASEAN, as well as to accelerate the digital transformation of the region to boost the economy and improve the social well-being of the region,” said Azmin.
At the Asean Summit, this time, Malaysia and other member states also signed the memorandum of understanding on the implementation of non-tariff measures on essential goods and the Asean Comprehensive Recovery Framework on 10 November.
The Memorandum of Understanding, which covers 152 essential goods identified in the categories of food, drugs, and medical appliances / devices, aims to facilitate the movement of essential goods to ensure an unhindered supply chain within the region.
Azmin stated that the MoU reflects Asean’s determination to preserve centrality and solidarity, as well as push forward efforts to accelerate economic recovery from the impact of Covid-19.
“There is also the Asean Comprehensive Recovery Framework and its implementation plan that will serve as a guide for Asean for economic recovery.
“Under ACRF, Accelerating Inclusive Digital Transformation focuses on accelerating digital transformation in the region by harnessing the momentum and imperative of digital transformation and taking advantage of the enormous opportunities that digital technologies present to drive the economy and improve post-society society. Covid-19.
“This includes digitizing documents and business processes for a seamless and fluid supply chain,” said Azmin.
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