AFP-ASEAN endorses investment road-

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Subject: AFP-ASEAN endorses investment road-show plan to lure foreign

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ASEAN endorses investment road-show plan to lure foreign investors
SINGAPORE, July 24 (AFP) - Southeast Asian foreign ministers endorsed a plan
for joint road-shows outside the region Saturday to lure back foreign
investors and fuel a nascent economic recovery.
They also said in a joint statement after annual talks in Singapore that
ASEAN economies would step up reforms to enhance the upturn.

The ASEAN ministers added they would consider establishing a human resources
development fund to speed up the integration of Cambodia and other late
entrants into the grouping, Myanmar and Laos.

The meeting was the first annual ministerial meeting since Cambodia was
admitted in April, bringing together all 10 countries in the region and
ending ideological divisions dating back to the Cold War.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand,
and Vietnam.

Southeast Asian countries are crawling out of a recession caused by the
financial turmoil that erupted in mid-1997, which also forced a capital
flight and crushed stock markets and currencies.

The ministers said in their statement that the road-shows would be led by
one economic minister from the region to countries such as the United
States, the European Union and Japan.

"We welcomed the idea of joint ASEAN roadshows proposed by Prime Minister
Goh Chok Tong of Singapore to market ASEAN as a joint investment area to our
major investors," the statement said.

"This represents a concrete and concerted effort to advance our common
interests and underscores our resolve to work together to restore ASEAN's
economic dynamism."

Goh Chok Tong proposed at the meeting's opening on Friday that ASEAN
organise joint investment promotion initiatives to market the region to the
major economies in North America, Europe and East Asia.

The joint statement said the Singaporean proposal would be submitted for
"further action" by the ASEAN economic ministers in September.

"The first follow-up (to the proposal) was when the ministers took up the
prime minister's initiative," Singaporean Foreign Minister Shanmugam
Jayakumar told reporters at a press conference.


He said the next step would be for "the economic ministers to endorse it"
since it was "really an economic initiative," adding he hoped the road-show
would take off after the 31st ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) meeting in
September.

The ministers also agreed that although the economic outlook for the region
had improved, there remained uncertainties.

"We acknowledged that more had to be done to sustain the recovery process
and renewed our commitment to continue undertaking the necessary policy
adjustment and structural reforms, and to expedite efforts in the reform of
the international financial architecture," the ministers said.

Jayakumar said the human resources development fund proposal was made in the
context of discussions on how to integrate the new ASEAN members.

"The fund will be especially focused on the human resources development of
newer countries enabling them to expedite their economic development," he
said.

"This will ensure that there will be no divide in economic development
between new and old members."