ASEAN Economic Community and Developing English Proficiency
ASEAN
ASEAN or Association of Southeast Asian Nations was founded in 1967, currently consisting of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand. Since its establishment, ASEAN countries have gradually and continually strengthened their economic integration, from the ASEAN Preferential Trading Arrangement (PTA) in 1977 to the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and now they further move to a deeper liberalization level to create the ASEAN Economic Community or AEC by 2015. The liberalization targets under AEC include not only the free movement of goods but also the free mobility of factors of production among member countries.
AEC and English proficiency in Thailand So what’s all this hype about the AEC? You encounter it everywhere—on the radio, on television, in the newspaper.
AEC is coming, Prepare for the AEC, Are You ready for the AEC?
It’s almost as exciting as the rumor about an alien invasion.
So is AEC an alien invasion? Well, sort of. But not the big-headed- green- creature- with- a- flying- saucer kind of thing. AEC stands for ASEAN Economic Community. We compare it to an alien invasion because it will bring about new opportunities and threats.
If you’re living in Thailand, this establishment will have an impact on you. AEC is the regional economic integration with the goal to form a single market base. It consists of the ASEAN members and it is to be launched in 2015. When the barriers between countries are opened, the flow of goods, people, services, and capital will lead to the increase in regional competition. There needs to be a common language for AEC members to use for communication. It so happens to be English; no big surprise there. The English language requirement is a concern for many Thai people because Thailand is still lagging behind in this area. Several researches have shown that Thailand’s English
ASEAN or Association of Southeast Asian Nations was founded in 1967, currently consisting of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand. Since its establishment, ASEAN countries have gradually and continually strengthened their economic integration, from the ASEAN Preferential Trading Arrangement (PTA) in 1977 to the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and now they further move to a deeper liberalization level to create the ASEAN Economic Community or AEC by 2015. The liberalization targets under AEC include not only the free movement of goods but also the free mobility of factors of production among member countries.
AEC and English proficiency in Thailand So what’s all this hype about the AEC? You encounter it everywhere—on the radio, on television, in the newspaper.
AEC is coming, Prepare for the AEC, Are You ready for the AEC?
It’s almost as exciting as the rumor about an alien invasion.
So is AEC an alien invasion? Well, sort of. But not the big-headed- green- creature- with- a- flying- saucer kind of thing. AEC stands for ASEAN Economic Community. We compare it to an alien invasion because it will bring about new opportunities and threats.
If you’re living in Thailand, this establishment will have an impact on you. AEC is the regional economic integration with the goal to form a single market base. It consists of the ASEAN members and it is to be launched in 2015. When the barriers between countries are opened, the flow of goods, people, services, and capital will lead to the increase in regional competition. There needs to be a common language for AEC members to use for communication. It so happens to be English; no big surprise there. The English language requirement is a concern for many Thai people because Thailand is still lagging behind in this area. Several researches have shown that Thailand’s English