The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has unveiled the “ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Strategic Plan 2026–2030,” aiming to position the region as the world’s fourth largest economic bloc by 2030 and targeting to double ASEAN’s digital economy to an estimated US$2 trillion.
Formally introduced on June 12 in Malaysia, the AEC strategic plan is a “blueprint for regional economic transformation” that will drive sustainable growth and deeper integration, according to Malaysian Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz during the launching.
It serves as a five-year strategic roadmap to realize a seamless ASEAN single market driven by innovation, sustainability, and productivity, while reinforcing the region’s role in global value chains and supporting its aspiration to become the world’s fourth largest economy, he said.
Tengku Zafrul added that ASEAN can become the world’s fourth largest economy if the region can maintain a steady gross domestic product growth rate of 4% to 5%.
The digital economy stands out as a key focus of the strategic plan, with its doubling to $2 trillion projected to bring transformative benefits to businesses across the region.
The minister highlighted how this initiative will also empower small and medium enterprises.
The AEC Strategic Plan 2026–2030 succeeds the AEC Blueprint 2025 and will implement the economic aspects of the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, which aims to create a “resilient, innovative, dynamic, and people-centered ASEAN” by 2045.
The AEC Strategic Plan is organized into five-year cycles. In the first five-year cycle, the plan outlines six strategic goals, 44 objectives and 192 strategic measures. The six goals are as follows:
• An action-oriented community: Realizing an integrated single market and production base with new sources of competitiveness
• A sustainable community: Engendering and mainstreaming climate-responsive elements and policies in all dimension
• An enterprising, bold, and innovative community: Enhancing sectoral cooperation, attuned to emerging trends and developments
• An adaptable and pro-active community: Strengthening Global ASEAN agenda
• A nimble and resilient community: Empowering the AEC and ASEAN peoples, withstanding shocks, stresses, crises, and volatility
• An inclusive, participatory, and collaborative community: Leaving no one behind, charting people-centered ASEAN
“This plan represents a new chapter in ASEAN’s economic journey, structured to respond to evolving business needs and emerging challenges while ensuring policies remain dynamic and relevant,” Tengku Zafrul further said.
“Through the AEC Strategic Plan, ASEAN aspires to significantly enhance intra-ASEAN trade by boosting the interconnectedness of the single market for goods, services, and investments,” he added.
“By further reducing persistent non-trade barriers, we can realize the fuller potential of intra-ASEAN trade. This will strengthen ASEAN’s competitiveness and build greater resilience against external shocks.”
The AEC is a regional economic bloc comprising the 10 ASEAN member states and was officially established on December 31, 2015. The AEC is one of the three key pillars of the ASEAN Vision 2045, besides the ASEAN Political-Security Community and the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community.
