ASEAN Needs Single Data To Help Determine Opportunities, Challenges

KUALA LUMPUR, April 6 (Bernama) -- ASEAN member countries should initiate a single data comprising various information that can help the region identify opportunities and challenges that need to be addressed. "By using a single a data, we can tell one story in one picture," said Philippine-based Businessworld Editor-in-Chief, Roberto Jose Alampay. He said this at the inaugural ASEAN Editors Summit 2016 jointly organised by the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia and Jakarta-based ASEAN Secretariat here, Tuesday. Alampay was one of the speakers at a session titled 'Driving ASEAN Economic Integration' moderated by Malaysia Global Business Forum chairman, Yong Soo Heong. He said there are numerous data available at present which are narrowed down to each market provided by public and private sectors, non-government organisations, agencies and others. Alampay said the compilation of all data was important for ASEAN to achieving its economic integration target. At the same time, the generated data should be structured in digital form and accessible to those who need the information such as the governments, researchers, journalists and the public at large. ASEAN was the world's seventh largest economy in 2014 with a combined gross domestic product of US$2.57 trillion, nearly doubled the 2007 figure of US$1.33 trillion. --BERNAMA