TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Wimboh Santoso, South East Asia Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), said that ASEAN countries were ready to welcome economic liberalization. Indonesia, Wimboh said, was considered to be one of the most competitive countries in ASEAN.

“ASEAN countries are important to the world” Wimboh said on Wednesday, August 20, 2014.

According to the former Bank Indonesia’s representative head in New York, ASEAN countries were projected to gain profits amid competition in economic liberalization. Wimboh explained that the world had always been referring to Europe as a role model to face global market. But apparently, ASEAN countries have been showing better economic growth.

Wimboh explained that the average economic growth in ASEAN was five percent with a stable trend. Meanwhile, European countries could only manage to attain 3-4 percent growth per year.

“This is why the world chose ASEAN as a model to face economic liberalization,” Wimboh said.

Wimboh added that Indonesia was one of the most anticipated countries in South East Asia. In addition to its large population, Indonesia has the largest natural resources among other ASEAN countries. As a country with a large population, Wimboh said, Indonesia might be a profitable market for foreign products. However, he believed that local products would be competitive and might as well be exported.

AHMAD RAFIQ