The road to regional economic integration of ASEAN countries has been undermined by the lack of a social dimension that should have put people first in addressing the impacts of the global financial crisis on the vulnerable sectors. While ASEAN and its member countries have succeeded in taking a more active positioning as a regional block in defining integrated and systemic solutions, support for the vulnerable sector has remained fragmented and under-resourced.
To prevent or mitigate future crises, ASEAN needs to formulate new global financial architecture that is fair and transparent, and that will narrow the widening gaps between and among economies. The mere focus on fiscal stimulus packages is not enough without the corresponding effective regulation of capital financial markets and a solid and integrated approach to addressing the complex concerns of the vulnerable sectors most affected by the crisis.
These were some of the recommendations that have emerged from the “Regional Conference on the Impact of Financial Crisis on Vulnerable Sectors of the Region: CSO Voices and ASEAN” attended by nearly 70 CSO leaders from organized groups of farmers, fishers, indigenous peoples, trade union, business/SME, as well as from the national and regional CSO networks, academe/research, donor community, and ASEAN senior officials.  These delegates came from Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia,  Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Taiwan and gathered at the Millenium Plaza in Jakarta, Indonesia  last July 28 to 29, 2009 to strengthen a constructive civil society interaction with ASEAN and policy makers in confronting the challenges of the global financial crisis.

The event, organized by AsiaDHRRA, AFA, UNI Apro/ASETUC, ASEAN, Oxfam HK, and GTZ, opened with a keynote address by Christopher NG, Regional Secretary of UNI Apro who observed that” the crisis is rooted in the global economic inequalities compounded by a global epidemic of bad corporate governance.” He explained that “like the governments and employers, the trade unions do have a stake in sustaining the viability, productivity and profitability of business, for this is central in creating decent, secure, sustainable jobs.”
Echoes of this emphasis on the role of the vulnerable sectors as equally important stakeholders in finding a regional solution to the crisis were heard from leaders representing the vulnerable sectors, namely: the farmers, represented by the Asian Farmers’ Association (AFA) ; fishers, by the Southeast Asia Fisherfolks for Justice (SEAFISH); trade union by UNI Apro/Asectuc;  women, by the  Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN); migrant workers, by the Task Force on ASEAN Migrant Workers; indigenous peoples, by the Indigenous Peoples Pact;  consumers, by the YKL1, business/SMEs by  Binasuwadaya, and development organizations, by AsiaDHRRA/InDHRRA.
Following an articulation by the sectors of the impact of the financial crisis in the region, its linkage with formal/informal sectors, food crisis, and climate change, global and regional responses to financial crisis were comprehensively discussed by representatives from ASEAN, World Bank, GTZ, TKN, UNDP, Ministry of Finance of Indonesia, and NSO. A productive exchange followed, which dealt with concerns about reducing dependence on foreign financing, failure of global governance to discipline the excesses of the corporate sector, the problem of unregulated financial market, regional economic integration and financial resilience, and the continuing impact of liberalized trading in Asia.
Among the challenges posed for CSOs, on the other hand, is in how to get a collective response inclusive of the people in the region, and in finding where it fits in the ASEAN programs and structures.  There was the positive note about the observed relative openness of ASEAN to engagement with CSOs in the past five years.
Based on these inputs, the delegates conducted workshops to define people-centered programs and policies responding to financial crisis for the agriculture sector, migrant workers and labor, consumers, and small and medium enterprises. The workshop aimed to identify the good policies and practices that are in place or that are being done, the gaps, and their recommendations to address these gaps. The workshops and the plenary discussions that followed generated policy directions and recommendations for addressing financial crisis at the national and regional levels.
The resulting draft consensus document was presented on the last day to the following representatives of regional and international regional bodies:  Dr. Aladdin Rillo, head of Finance Cooperation Division of the ASEAN Secretariat, Dr. Vivi Alatas, Senior Economist of World Bank Indonesia, Ms.Johanna Knoess of GTZ-Indonesia, Mr. Anggito Abimanyu of Indonesia’s Ministry of Finance, Mr. Sandagran Solomon Joseph Pitchay of NUBE Malaysia.
The delegates concluded with action planning to identify the most important action points to move the recommendations forward within the next three to six months at the national, regional, and international levels.
The event concluded with a press conference with reporters from Indonesia and the international media community.