2016 as a new beginning? ASEAN and the AEC

In the end of 2015 the ASEAN Economic Community is supposed to start off and path the way for a free economic area in Southeast Asia. Some countries, as Vietnam, fear it, others, like Thailand, have high hopes. What can be expected to happen to the economic situation after the launch and which model for development for ASEAN would be desirable? Which are concrete steps to be implemented to create a common market for goods, services and people?Speaker: Bonn Juego With the lecture series “Understanding Southeast Asia” the Heinrich Boell Foundation offers insights into select areas of society, politics and economics in order to contribute to a better understanding of this divers region.We have invited renowned experts, largely from the region, to explain Southeast Asia’s complexities and to promote an understanding of regional dynamics as well as their global impacts.