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On October 24, 2025, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the 26th ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Council Meeting announced the substantial conclusion of negotiations on the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) — one of the flagship and priority economic initiatives under Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025.
The Vietnamese delegation to the meeting was led by Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Sinh Nhat Tan, accompanied by representatives from units under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, including the Multilateral Trade Policy Department, the E-Commerce and Digital Economy Agency, and the Office of the Inter-sectoral Steering Committee for International Economic Integration.
After fourteen rounds of intensive negotiations since the launch in September 2023, ASEAN Member States have reached consensus on 24 articles and 98 paragraphs, equivalent to 73% of the total paragraphs of the core provisions with substantive value of the Agreement — surpassing the 70% benchmark for declaring the substantial conclusion of DEFA negotiations.
The substantial conclusion of the DEFA negotiations marks a significant milestone in ASEAN’s digital transformation journey, contributing to the realization of ASEAN’s vision of a modern, connected, and secure digital economy. It aims to facilitate cross-border flows of goods, services, and data based on harmonized rules, digital infrastructure, and capacities.
The DEFA is expected to create new opportunities for the business community while strengthening ASEAN’s resilience against global uncertainties. The Agreement covers advanced and emerging areas such as paperless trade, electronic payments, personal data protection, cybersecurity cooperation, digital identity, and new domains including artificial intelligence.
The AEC Council also emphasized the importance of the timely completion, signing, and effective implementation of the Agreement to advance the objectives of the ASEAN Vision 2045 and the AEC Strategic Plan 2026–2030, steering towards a digital, integrated, and sustainable ASEAN Economic Community.
| The ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) is one of the key initiatives under the Bandar Seri Begawan Roadmap (BSBR) on Digital Transformation — ASEAN’s digital transformation agenda adopted at the 20th ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Council Meeting. The DEFA, expected to be fully concluded by the end of 2025, is envisioned to establish a solid foundation for ASEAN to become a leading digital economy region, serving as a comprehensive framework that consolidates various digital transformation and digital economy action plans into a single cohesive strategy. |
