ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Concepcion calls for more inclusive, borderless ASEAN digital economy

Concepcion calls for more inclusive, borderless ASEAN digital economy

Published Jul 28, 2026 04:49 pm
ASEAN-BAC Philippines Chair Jose Ma. Concepcion III delivers his keynote address on the opening day of the ASEAN Tech Summit Manila 2026 on July 28 at the Marriott Grand Ballroom in Pasay City.
ASEAN-BAC Philippines Chair Jose Ma. Concepcion III delivers his keynote address on the opening day of the ASEAN Tech Summit Manila 2026 on July 28 at the Marriott Grand Ballroom in Pasay City.
Stressing that there are many underrepresented sectors in business, Association of Southeast Asian Nations-Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) Philippines Chair Joey Concepcion called for a more inclusive and borderless ASEAN digital economy.
Speaking at the ASEAN Tech Summit Manila 2026 on Tuesday, July 28, Concepcion stressed that ASEAN's digital transformation must create opportunities for everyone, especially micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), women entrepreneurs, and other underrepresented sectors.
"We want to have an inclusive economy. Many of these people who are in micro business are women. These are the people we must help," Concepcion said.
Technology, he said, has become a powerful equalizer by giving entrepreneurs greater access to markets, digital finance, and new business opportunities.
"Digitalization has done wonders by providing access to markets, fintech, and these new technologies. This will enable our entrepreneurs to scale up. ASEAN will only be successful if we truly make it inclusive,” he said.
Concepcion added that ASEAN-BAC Philippines remains committed to ensuring that the benefits of the country's ASEAN Chairmanship will trickle down to the “bottom of the pyramid” by bringing opportunities closer to ordinary Filipinos.
"So how do we make it inclusive? The only way is to share with our Filipino people what is happening," he said, citing the Trabaho at Negosyo initiative as a platform to engage more Filipinos and demonstrate how they, too, can participate in ASEAN's economic integration.
"Trabaho at Negosyo" is the Go Negosyo program which conducts free entrepreneurship mentoring and job matching at urban centers nationwide. Concepcion is the founder of Go Negosyo.
During the summit, ASEAN-BAC Philippines Senior Adviser for Digital and AI Josephine Romero announced that, under the Philippines' ASEAN-BAC chairmanship, the council has established its first-ever Permanent Working Group for Digital and Innovation, a milestone in the organization's 25-year history.
Romero highlighted the successful conclusion of negotiations for the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), describing it as a landmark initiative that will reshape the region's digital space.
The two-day ASEAN Tech Summit Manila 2026 is organized by FinTech Alliance PH.
The summit brought together policymakers, regulators, financial institutions, technology leaders, and innovators from across Southeast Asia to discuss digital trade, financial technology, artificial intelligence (AI), cross-border payments, and the future of the region's digital economy.

Related Tags

ASEAN Business Advisory Council (BAC) Philippines ASEAN BAC Joey Concepcion Go Negosyo ASEAN Tech Summit Manila 2026
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ static_articles_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.