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Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah attended the 55th ASEAN Economic Ministers’ (AEM) Meeting and Related Meetings in Semarang, Indonesia on August 19-22. The series of meetings, chaired by Indonesia, included the AEM-37th ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (AFTA) Council Meeting, AEM-26th ASEAN Investment Area (AIA) Council Meeting, AEM-ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) Consultation, the 55th AEM Meeting, AEM-Director General of World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Interface Meeting and the 2nd Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Ministerial Meeting, and the various AEM Consultations with ASEAN’s Dialogue Partners, including Australia, Canada, China, European Union, Hong Kong, China, India, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Russia and the United States. One of the main highlights during the AEM meetings was the commencement of the signing of the Second Protocol to Amend the Agreement Establishing the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA), at a signing ceremony held on the sidelines of the meetings. The ceremony was participated by Brunei Darussalam, as the ASEAN country coordinator for AANZFTA, Indonesia, as ASEAN Chair for 2023, Australia and New Zealand. The upgraded AANZFTA provided value-added elements and introduction of new chapters – government procurement, trade and sustainable development, and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The upgrade also took into account modern trade practices and new provisions that could enhance supply chain resilience as well as addressing trade related challenges. The Second Protocol, which upgrades the original AANZFTA Agreement that entered into force on January 1, 2010, is expected to be signed by all parties before the end of this year. During the AEM-37th ASEAN AFTA Council Meeting, the AEM noted the positive progress of the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) upgrade negotiations and encouraged officials to expedite the discussions to finalise the upgrade in 2024. The launching of the new ASEAN Tariff Finder is also welcomed to facilitate businesses in obtaining latest trade information such as trade regimes and tariff rates for specific products. ![](https://media.everythingbrunei.com/public/Q77ZFVqOLBifq_2RfU5Lv-DtKNkPFLqmqprRMJb1xQ2.jpeg) Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah at the meeting. PHOTO: MOFE The ministers commended the substantial conclusion of the Fifth Protocol to Amend the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA) during the AEM-26th AIA Council Meeting. The Fifth Protocol provide greater certainty and transparency to investors on investment regimes in ASEAN and discussed the latest foreign direct investment (FDI) trends and developments as outlined on the Special ASEAN Investment Report 2023: International Investment trends – Key issues and policy options. The 55th AEM Meeting reaffirmed ASEAN’s determination to promote regional economic integration despite the on-going economic challenges which has affected the regional supply chains under the theme of ‘ASEAN Matters: Epicentrum of Growth’. The ASEAN economy has shown a positive development with an increase by 5.7 per cent in 2022 and the projected growth rates in 2023 is 4.6 per cent and 4.9 per cent in 2024. The ministers discussed the implementation progress of the Mid-Term Review of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Blueprint 2025 and the progress on the development of ASEAN Community’s Post-2025 in ASEAN’s effort to further deepen regional economic integration. The recommendations in the final report of the Study on the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) and the Framework for Negotiating DEFA are also endorsed during the meeting. The documents will guide the ASEAN member states in the upcoming DEFA negotiations which will commence in 2023. In addition, the ministers deliberated in the implementation and the status of negotiations of ASEAN’s various Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with its major trading partners, such as, China, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, and Australia and New Zealand to ensure that ASEAN’s FTAs remain relevant and beneficial to the businesses in the region. The ministers also welcomed the full implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement with the entry into force of the agreement for Indonesia and the Philippines on January 2 and June 2. The signing of the ASEAN-WIPO memorandum of understanding was convened to expand cooperation between ASEAN and WIPO to help ASEAN small and medium enterprises and start-ups, among others, in leveraging digital technologies for business success through effective use of Intellectual Property and supporting the creative industries of ASEAN.

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