ASEAN urged to boost business, investment efficiency

27 Oct, 2010
Source:Xinhua

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said here Wednesday at the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit that ASEAN countries should work together closely to boost efficiency of business and investment activities.

The summit is co-organized by Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Business Advisory Council and Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Dung said the business summit offers a platform for company leaders, policy-makers and economists from ASEAN countries to discuss opportunities and challenges in pursuing sustainable development.

Dung said this process will contribute to narrowing the development gap among ASEAN countries and maintaining social stability in the region, said Dung.

The idea of ASEAN Business and Investment Summit (ASEAN-BIS) was created in 2002 by leaders from ASEAN countries as a part of the bloc's annual leaders' summit to encourage the participation of business sector in the process of building the ASEAN Economic Community, an important pillar of the ASEAN Community.

The first ASEAN-BIS was held in 2003. It now serves as a forum linking the private sector with public sector and government representatives.

ASEAN, founded in 1967, currently groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.