Digital Pilipinas leads on inclusivity, sustainability, and creativity as key drivers of the region’s digital economy growth
The ASEAN Indo-Pacific Forum (AIPF) 2023, Indonesia’s flagship event as ASEAN Chair in 2023, convened government leaders, top industry executives, and market trailblazers in Jakarta last September 5 and 6, 2023.
Top ASEAN leaders, including President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. of the Philippines and President Joko Widodo of Indonesia, attended the opening of the event, which was organized to advance the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) initiative adopted by member states in 2019.
Digital Pilipinas and Digital ASEAN proudly took part in the ASEAN Indo-Pacific Forum 2023 during the 43rd ASEAN Summit in Jakarta with government leaders and top-level industry and market trailblazers. Digital Pilipinas represented by Convenor Amor Maclang championed discussions on sustainability, inclusivity, and creativity for the region’s digital economy growth.
Working together to achieve prosperity for all
The AOIP recognizes the need for Asia-Pacific countries to work together to achieve prosperity for all. The AIPF invited stakeholders to discuss collaborative projects in the region to achieve this mission. The forum focused on three key issues: green infrastructure and resilient supply chains, sustainable and innovative financing, digital transformation, and creative economies.
Digital Pilipinas, the largest private sector movement for creating a technology and innovation ecosystem in the country, represents the Philippines together with industry champions and national line agency officials at AIPF 2023. Amor Maclang, Convenor of Digital Pilipinas and Co-Founder of the One ASEAN Fintech Movement (OAFM), spearheaded the discussions on sustainability, inclusivity, and creativity as key drivers of the region’s digital economy growth.
Maclang says Filipinos are heavy social media users and consume content that reflects the interests of their peers. This is because the Philippines is a mobile-first country and social media is a major source of news, entertainment, and information. This curiosity drives Filipinos to consume content, such as movies, TV shows, music, and books, that reflects the interests of their peers.
“Since we’re in an era where representation matters, more diverse contents are coming in and the world is looking at Southeast Asia. We are not just a growing market of content consumers. We are now being eyed as producers of content,” she emphasized.
“Streaming giants and Southeast Asian content creators have a mutually beneficial relationship. Streaming giants invest in local content to meet global demand, while the local industry benefits from increased exposure and investment. The growing global appeal of Southeast Asian content is reflected in the streaming giants’ investments,” Maclang added.
The region’s thriving content creation economy is projected to reach USD2.59 billion in 2024, a sharp increase from USD638 million in 2019.
Digital Pilipinas: supporting the call of the ASEAN
During the event, Maclang also spoke alongside other ASEAN and Asia-Pacific leaders, including Darren Ong, Head of Digital Services and Global Selling, International Public Policy of Amazon; Danny Wirianto, Chief Business Officer of GDP Venture; Pandu Sjahrir of AC Ventures; Khairussaleh Ramli of Maybank; Leonard Lim of Zoom; Chad Pasha of Coursera; Michaela Browning of Google; Klaus Schwab of the World Economic Forum; Ajay Banta of the World Bank; Marisa Drew of Standard Chartered, Ahmed Mazhari of Microsoft; Dony Oskaria of InJourney, Yang Li of Booking.com; Ruben Hattari of Netflix; and Chaitanya Divan of Amazon Prime.
Digital Pilipinas is supporting the call of the ASEAN and Asia-Pacific governments, private sector leaders, international financial institutions, and organizations at the AIPF 2023 for a digital, inclusive, and creative economy with its 365-day programs. These programs will culminate in the Digital Pilipinas Festival (DPF) and the Philippine FinTech Festival (PFF), which will run from November 20 to 24, 2023, in Manila.
The Digital Pilipinas Festival and Philippine FinTech Festival align with ASEAN objectives, including a digital, inclusive, and creative economy; green and sustainable infrastructure and resilient supply chain; and innovative and sustainable finance.
The DPF and PFF will serve as a recap of the Digital ASEAN year. The festival will take place immediately after the Singapore FinTech Festival and during the Philippine Startup Week in Manila, Philippines.
This event ran parallel with another equally important side event spearheaded by the ASEAN Business Advisory Council, led most notably by Chairman Joey Concepcion, George Barcelona, Proptech Consortium of the Philippines co-founder Josephine Romero, Fintech Philippines Association President George Royeca, Martha Sazon, and Cherrie Atillano among many other leaders.
Digital Pilipinas’ participation in the ASEAN Indo-Pacific Forum is a testament to its commitment to working with other countries in the region to build a more digital and inclusive future.
Catch up on the latest developments about and programs of Digital Pilipinas and Digital Pilipinas Festival via https://digitalpilipinas.ph/.