Less than a month before President Marcos Jr. will gavel its opening, preparations for the ASEAN Summit are “time on target,” agencies reported to Executive Secretary Ralph Recto in a command conference.
“With 20 heads of state in attendance, this is a meeting with a million moving parts, from convoys to conferences, from agenda to attractions to be visited, from security to seat plans, so failure on our part is not an option,” Recto said.
He chairs the ASEAN National Organizing Council that is on top of the preparations for the 49th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits on November 15–17.
Accompanying the 20 heads of state and government that will converge at the Philippine International Convention Center are thousands of state delegates and business leaders who will discuss regional and global political, security, and economic priorities.
“There is a long check list of things to be done, and we have ticked almost all of them.”
Recto said “there is a long check list of things to be done, and we have ticked almost all of them. This ranges from the minute, like the salubong sa tarmac, to the massive, which is the road traffic adjustments.”
He stressed as hosts, “we are trying to blend the Filipino’s charming fiesta hospitality with the serious business that will be tackled during the summit.”
Recto has high hopes that the summit will yield “peace, progress, and prosperity” dividends not just for the Philippines but for the region as well”.
“Isang sukatan ng tagumpay ng ating ASEAN hosting ay kung ano ang pakinabang ng ating mamamayan.”
“Isang sukatan ng tagumpay ng ating ASEAN hosting ay kung ano ang pakinabang ng ating mamamayan,” he said.
Recto added that agreements forged during the meetings should create jobs, expand business opportunities, and strengthen security.
Among the proposals expected to move forward is the substantial conclusion of negotiations for the ASEAN-Canada Free Trade Agreement.
The agreement could give Filipino exporters wider access to markets and support new investment and business activity.
ASEAN Member States are also expected to sign the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement, which is intended to set common rules for digital trade and cross-border data flows.
The agreement also aims to strengthen cooperation on cybersecurity and data protection, while making it easier for businesses, including small enterprises, to reach customers across the region and for people to transact online with greater confidence.
He said the summit would help ASEAN leaders decide “what we do for the rest of the year, what we do in the future, how we can help each other, and what is the ASEAN position regarding all of these shocks that are coming our way.”
“We have proven that we can be prudent with public resources without curbing the ambitious targets of the summit,” Recto said, urging agencies to maintain close coordination as preparations continue.
Attending the ASEAN NOC meeting were DBM Secretary Kim de Leon, DOT Secretary Dita-Angara Mathay, DOTr Secretary Vince Dizon, DILG Secretary Jonvic Remulla, DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian, DICT Secretary Robert Joseph de Claro and senior officials from multiple agencies.
