Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesia, the biggest economy and the only G20 developing natio💟n in Southeast Asia which accounts f🦋or about 40 percent of ASEAN’s GDP, has exerted great efforts to prepare itself for the establishment of ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by the end of this month.

Indonesia has formed a national committee, which include policy-makers at central and local levels, business leaders, and experts, to analyse and assess the situation and identify all preparatory tasks for the government. The government has hereby designed new policies to facilitate exports and imports, improve local business climate and increase competitiveness. It has also developed special mechanisms to handle AEC-related issues and provide information regarding ASEAN Community and its three pillars for not only state agencies but also the public, particularly businesses and students. Suitable roadmaps have been drawn up to boost promising industries, such as electronics, automobile, cement, textile-garment, footwear, agriculture, seafood and beverage, once the AEC is officially launched. Indonesia has a population of 253 million people and about 55 million skilled workers. Unlike Singapore and Thailand who are facing population aging, the country expects to have more than 65 percent of the population at working age between 2020 and 2030. These would make a great advantage for the country over its peers in terms of workforce. The People’s Representative Council of Indonesia passed a labour bill last year to establish a legal framework for migrant workers in the country once the AEC is formed. According to many experts, to advance its regional integration, Indonesia should develop a national programme involving both public and private sectors to enhance quantity of its export products. Furthermore, the government was urged to fuel infrastructure development by foreign direct investment and prohibit monopolistic practices and unfair business competition in accordance with the country’s Law No.5 of 1999.-VNA