The Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (AVID) opened up a dialogue on the opportunities and challenges posed by the ASEAN integration in 2015 in its fourth Thought Leadership Forum (TLF) which was held at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) last week.

Themed “Come Unity, Setting Directions for one ASEAN”, the conference featured an inter-industry dialogue with a panel of experts led by Dr. Cielito Habito, Chief of Party, USAID’s Trade Related Technical Assistance for Development (TRADE) Project. The other speakers were Dr. Federico Macaranas, Core Faculty of the Asian Institute of Management, Dr. Rafaelita Aldaba, Assistant Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry, and Ms. Maria Fe Perez-Agudo, President of AVID.

Among the topics discussed at the forum included:

“Defining new directions for corporate strategy in the ASEAN Economic Community”—where the ASEAN Economic Community is changing the game for all its member nations.  In this new and highly liberalized environment, the speakers presented what directions Philippine businesses must take to maximize the benefits of AEC. And as regional integration reshapes corporate strategies, speakers also tackled the mindsets that the business sector should embrace to emerge as winners in this new landscapr

The second part of the forum, “Building the right niche for the Philippine auto industry in the ASEAN Economic Community”—was an analysis of the regional and global competitiveness of the Philippine auto industry and the proposed attitude and policy shifts the Industry can undertake to drive growth within the AEC. Of special interest is the focus on the need to build a more vigorous small and medium enterprises (SME) sector in the Philippines in order to enhance and strengthen the link between the automotive assembly sector and the local parts and components sector. In this area, the AEC can offered wider access and creates new boundaries for trade and investments.

In a statement, AVID President Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo said, “AVID is always in step with market movement. As a member country of one of the most important economic blocks in the world today, we look forward to what the AEC has to bring for the Philippines. The AEC is changing the game for Philippine business and it’s time for us in the automotive industry to take stock, step up, and move as one, establish a policy environment and incentives structure that are synchronized with regional and global developments; push for a level playing field for the entire industry; and ultimately, uphold consumer welfare. In that way, we sustain our Industry and contribute to maintaining our country’s momentum as an emergent power player in the region.”