The integration of the ASEAN community will present many opportunitiesand benefits, said Thomas Thomas, chief executive officer of the ASEANCorporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Network, on June 12.

Ata workshop on the ASEAN CSR Vision 2020 initiative in Singapore, Thomassaid fast economic growth will, however, also come with manychallenges. If the growth is not equitable and inclusive, it will createtensions in society and be unsustainable.

He notedthat businesses need to respect basic human rights, raise labourstandards, protect the natural environment and eradicate corruption.

He added the ASEAN CSR Vision 2020 initiative aims to create a commonview on how to build the bloc as a sustainable community so as tobenefit all people.

This will be reached by creatinga common strategy on CSR, pushing up the application of internationalstandards on CSR, and working together on important issues.

At the function, representatives from the governments and businesscircles, international organisations of the regional countries andJapan, the UK and Sweden shared their views on CSR, hoping for a healthyand balanced development among the bloc’s nations.

The ASEAN CSR Network, launched on January 11, 2011, is supported by theASEAN Foundation, through the ASEAN-Japan Solidarity Fund. It seeks tomainstream the practice of CSR in support of ASEAN’s goals ofsustainable, equitable, and inclusive socio-economic development.-VNA