Pushing micro, small and medium enterprises as economic drivers and the shift toward digital operations were the focus of the two-day Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit which local business executives lauded as the right way forward for the nascent economic bloc.

At the ASEAN 2022 Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Go Negosyo founder and ASEAN Business Advisory Council chairperson for the Philippines Joey Concepcion said the ASEAN priority is good news to entrepreneurs targeting to bounce back from the ill effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"It is elating that ASEAN leaders were unanimous in saying that MSMEs are the true engine of growth in ASEAN," Concepcion said, as he added that, in the region, MSMEs comprise 99 percent of all establishments, contribute 85 percent of jobs, and 45 percent of the gross domestic product.

The ASEAN Summit will kick off a host of free trade and diplomatic meetings that will culminate in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Thailand on 19 November.

"We must all be constantly guided by a strong spirit of cooperation not just amongst ourselves as member nations, but also within ourselves as individual nations," Aboitiz Group president and CEO and APEC Business Advisory Council PH member Sabin Aboitiz said.

Optimism abundant

Business leaders expressed optimism as the leaders recognized the role of governments in helping MSMEs.

"We're all moving in the same direction," Concepcion said as he stressed how ASEAN leaders affirmed the role of digitalization among MSMEs primarily in enhancing competitiveness and productivity across the region.

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos cited the need, during his address at the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit, "to upgrade, upskill and upsize MSMEs, while acknowledging that digital transformation is vital."

"This is in addition to our efforts to enable our systems to catch up with the rapid development of the digital economy," Marcos added.

NeakOknha Kith Meng, chairperson of the ASEAN BAC said "MSMEs are also most vulnerable to the uncertainties, urging to make economic integration a priority to achieve faster economic resilience at national and regional levels."