(Bandar Seri Begawan) Today more than 30 small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) entrepreneurs participated in a discussion in Bandar Seri Begawan with members of the US-ASEAN Business Council to help improve their competitiveness in preparation for the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) 2015. Key topics discussed during the event included supply chain management and logistics, customs, and tax issues for the SMEs.
The event was organized by the US-ASEAN Business Council (US-ABC), through its joint-initiative with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID): the US-ASEAN Business Alliance for Competitive SMEs. The event was supported by ASEAN Business Advisory Council Brunei, the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resource, Brunei Darussalam, and the U.S. Embassy in Brunei. US-ABC’s leading global member companies such as Procter and Gamble (P&G), United Parcel Service (UPS), and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) participated in today’s event.
Says Hatsunori Kiriyama, President of Asia, Procter & Gamble (P&G), Chair of ASEAN Committee, US-ASEAN Business Council: “At P&G, we recognize that SMEs are key growth engines of any economy. Through our involvement in the US-ASEAN Business Alliance for Competitive SMEs, we are proud to drive initiatives to help strengthen the competitiveness of local companies to compete regionally and globally. This is in line with our commitment to supporting region-building efforts towards the establishment of an ASEAN Community.”
“UPS is pleased to be part of this important ASEAN program to help Bruneian SMEs participate in global supply chains and benefit from ASEAN Economic Community initiatives. We hope greater knowledge of international shipping will help Bruneian SMEs better understand how logistics brings value to their business, increase their competitiveness and navigate trade complexities,” said Jeff McLean, Managing Director of South Asia District Agent Operations, UPS, Vice Chair of the ASEAN Committee, US-ASEAN Business Council.
The Alliance has conducted training programs for SMEs in all 10 ASEAN Member Countries, reaching over 2,000 entrepreneurs throughout Southeast Asia so far.
For more information about the US-ASEAN Business Alliance for Competitive SMEs, contact Anthony Nelson at the US-ASEAN Business Council ( anelson@usasean.org)
