Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – Policies and regulations on free flow ofdata across the  countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) must be realised urgently to further promote digitalisation and itsgrowing participation in the region, according to Malaysia’s national news agency Bernama.

This call was made before the first ASEAN DigitalMinisters Meeting (ADGMIN 1), scheduled to be held via teleconference onJanuary 21 and 22, under the chair of Malaysian Minister of Communications and Multimedia DatukSaifuddin Abdullah, and attended by representatives from ASEAN’s dialoguepartners including Japan, China, the European Union, the Republic of Korea, andthe International Telecommunication Union.

Themed “ASEAN: A Digitally Connected Community", the meeting aimsto promote cooperation among ASEAN member countries towards building digitalecosystems as a pillar in the post-COVID-19 development plan.

Bernama quoted Senior Economist ofJakarta-based Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia , Dr. LurongChen, saying that the call isessential now as digital activities which include rule setting, tradefacilitation and service liberalisation would certainly be beneficial.

Chen  said with the challenging period of thecurrent COVID-19 pandemic, the free flow of data implementation would certainlyhelp to further spur the digital economy, and moving towards its integrationacross the region./.