Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, March 30) — Strengthened presence in global value chains will make economies in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) less vulnerable to challenges, such as pandemics, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in a report released Thursday.
The call came following the results of its report “ASEAN and Global Value chains: Locking in Resilience and Sustainability,” which found that global value chains “proved more resilient to the impact of COVID-19 than expected.”The 10 ASEAN member states are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.According to ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa, members of ASEAN must pursue measures “in a greener and more sustainable way” to have a strong rebound from COVID-19 and become resilient against future headwinds.“This report proposes concrete measures that governments and businesses can adopt to decarbonize global value chains. Investments in renewable energy and improved efficiency, incentives to reduce trading costs for climate-smart goods, and the acceleration of digitalization can all contribute to greener and more sustainable value chains in ASEAN and beyond,” the official said.ADB said there is also a need to equip workers with new technology and technological skills as digital tools are now being tapped to upgrade global value chains.It likewise backed policies promoting decarbonization as this strengthens cross-border networks.
