Asean, India should cooperate for stronger RCEP — Singapore PM
SINGAPORE: Asean and India should work together to conclude a high quality Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), surpassing the existing AseanIndia Free Trade Area (AIFTA), said Singapore Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong.
In his op-ed on the occasion of the Asean-India Commemorative Summit 2018, Lee said the cooperation would create an integrated Asian market, comprising nearly half of the world’s population and a third of the world’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
As Singapore is the Asean Chairman for 2018, Lee acted as the co-chair for the two-day summit in New Delhi which started yesterday, together with India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.
He said streamlining rules and regulations would stimulate investments in both directions, complement India’s ‘Act East’ policy and facilitate ‘Made in India’ exports to the region.
The op-ed was posted on the Singapore Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) website yesterday.
Lee noted that, as the Asean chairman, Singapore was committed to strengthening Asean-India ties.
“If both sides use our historical and cultural links to tackle today’s challenges and build bridges for the future, our youth and the next generation stand to gain the most,” he said.
According to Lee,under AIFTA, Asean-India trade has been rising steadily over the years, from US$2.9 billion (RM3.89 per dollar) in 1993 to US$58.4 billion in 2016.
He said the combined population of Asean and India totalled 1.8 billion, a quarter of the world’s population, while the combined GDP exceeded US$4.5 trillion.
By 2025, Lee said, India’s consumer market is expected to become the fifth largest in the world, while middle-class households would grow to 163 million in Southeast Asia.
“Both regions are also experiencing a demographic dividend with 60 per cent of Asean’s population below 35 years, while India is projected to be the world’s youngest country with an average age of 29 by 2020.
“Asean and India also have a fast-growing Internet user base, which will help us to grow the digital economy.
“Against this backdrop, there is still much scope to strengthen economic ties, as India accounted for only 2.6 per cent of Asean’s external trade in 2016,” he added.
Lee said Singapore had always advocated India’s inclusion in the Asean Community, adding, the country was an Asean Sectoral Dialogue Partner in 1992, a full Asean Dialogue Partner in 1995, and has participated in the East Asia Summits (EAS) since 2005. — Bernama