Four ASEAN members, including Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the
Philippines, on April 25 will hold discussions on the ASEAN Connectivity
Plan as part of the 22 nd ASEAN Summit to be held in Bandar Seri
Begawan, Brunei this week.
According to a media statement
released by the organisers, the programme, titled “the ninth
Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippine East ASEAN Growth Area
(BIMP-EAGA)”, attempts to improve economic integration between the
countries as part of the ASEAN effort to become a EU-like organisation
by 2015.
Besides accelerating the implementation of existing and
new proposed projects, the ongoing works are also to enhance the
operational mechanism of BIMP-EAGA, the statement said.
Leaders
of the four countries are expected to debate on accelerating the
implementation of the prioritised infrastructure projects in the region,
especially in transportation, energy, trade and information technology.
Private Equity International magazine estimated that ASEAN will
need around 1 trillion USD in the next seven years to reach its
infrastructure targets.-VNA