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matters, the December 31 launch will not be eventful, as there is no penalty for not completing requirements. “The deadline is more like the UN Millennium Developments Goals, which have no clear cut-off point.”oped countries such as Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos.maritime infrastructure such as deep sea ports to tap potential when the region grows into a single market. The country has completed 85% of policy and laws to accommodate the single market, trade and labour flow that will occur once the AEC becomes active.For Mr Apichai, the AEC has the potential to be a new production base. “What will happen if labour costs in China become too expensive? In that scenario, where will ASEAN stand and how can it benefit from the opportunity?”There are still divisions between nations, but Mr Apichai, a former executive director of the ASEAN Foundation, sees positive changes happening.There have been more challenges that countries in ASEAN need to deal with when the area becomes a single market. Those challenges, according to Mr Apichai, are health and environmental issues, as well as crime that tends to occur when borders open and labour moves more freely. ASEAN also needs to bridge the gap between developed nations such as Singapore and underdevel-Lutfi Rauf, Indonesian ambassa- dor to Thailand since 2012, said that the AEC and the single market are not an event but more of a gradual process.He also encourages ASEAN countries to explore trade around the region, especially India and the Pacific. In his view, ASEAN countries need to highlight the stability of the region.“We also have a greater sense of commonness, a feeling that we are part of the ASEAN community,” he said.For Ambassador Rauf, the challenge is to generate confidence among the international community that ASEAN is united.For Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago, the main challenge is how to raise public awareness. So far barely over 50% of those in Indonesia’s business community understand about the AEC and the single market.“We have come this far because we have proved that the region is a peaceful zone,” he said.Indonesia plans to expand itsElite+ 39