Today, 8 th August is ASEAN Day.

This year, 2017, is also a special year as we, people of ASEAN celebrate the 50 th Anniversary of the founding of ASEAN.

Founded in 1967, ASEAN has grown over five decades. Its three communities – Political-Security, Economic and Social-Cultural – are focused more on achieving higher levels of integration across the communities. ASEAN is both the world’s seventh-largest market and third-largest labour force, and has been projected to become the fourth-largest economic bloc by 2030.

These economic achievements have come about through much focused efforts for an economic integration across the 10 ASEAN Member States and through Trade and Investment Agreements with other countries. We, ASEAN CSR Network, an ASEAN entity, believe that the economic integration to create a single market and production base is important to the prosperity goals of meeting the needs of people in ASEAN. This will now be further enhanced with closer integration across all the communities and especially across the socio-cultural and political-security communities.

We note with much satisfaction that ASEAN 2025: Forging Ahead Together document has articles with references to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) across all three Community Blueprints. ACN looks forward to opportunities of working with ASEAN Secretariat, ASEAN Bodies & Entities and Member States to realise the goal of getting ASEAN businesses to be responsible in the conduct of running their businesses to achieve a sustainable, inclusive and equitable ASEAN that benefits all people, especially vulnerable groups such as women, migrant workers, children, indigenous communities, whilst sustaining the environment.

We celebrate 50 years of ASEAN and look forward with much excitement to the next 50 years as together with ASEAN, businesses and partners, we will work hard to effect for real change. 

Asean CSR Network Secretariat

August 8 th , 2017