Digital Economy and China-ASEAN Cooperation

Prof Dr Aini Aman

FACULTY OF ECONOMICS AND MANAGEMENT, UNIVERSITI KEBANGSAAN MALAYSIA
FACULTY OF ECONOMICS AND MANAGEMENT, UKM
Center of Global Business &
Digital Economy (GloBDE)
Established in Jun 2018 to support
development in Global Business with Industry
4.0 and digital economy.

To generate and promote advanced

knowledge to leverage emerging technologies
and best practices in global business and
digital economy for sustainable and
competitive businesses, government and
society.
Global Business Services (GBS)

“Global Business Services (GBS) is a major contributor to

Malaysia’s digital economy.”

Hew Wee Choong (2018),

Vice President, Investment & Industry Development, MDEC

6
Master / PhD in
Digital Economy

Equips you with knowledge, skills and

tools for engaging the many
challenges and research opportunities
incurred by digital change and
innovation.
Thesis Specialisation area:
BIG DATA ANALYTICS
ROBOTIC PROCESS AUTOMATION
BLOCKCHAIN
DIGITAL ECONOMICS
PUBLIC DIGITALIZATION
Current PhD Research Topics (Selected)

Robotic Process Accounting Information

FinTech Global Business Services Cloud Accounting Big Data Analytics
Automation System

Performance Green healthcare supply Green Oil and Gas

Halal tranportation Big Data Halal HED Service Quality
Measurement Systems chain Supply Chain

Simultaneous
Foreign Exchange Calendar Anomalies and
Determination Of Major
Exposure and Hedging Adaptive Marker
Corporate Social Financial Decisions In
Strategy Business Cycle Hypothesis in
Responsibility (CSR) The Presence Of
as Moderating Effect Bangladesh Stock Market
Corporate Governance
Factors
My Current research in digital economy

Cloud Based Development Data Center Development

Shared Service New Digital supported with of Blockchain
Development
Learning for Global Business Blockchain of API for Human
of Global Digital
Digital Services Hub in Land Resource
Halal Hub
Transformation Pahang and Ownership for Department
in SMEs Perak Orang Asli UKM
Digital Economy and
China-ASEAN
Cooperation
Unlocking Opportunities in a Dynamic Region
Digital Economy Definition
The OECD defines the digital economy, known also as internet
economy in academia, as the part of an economy that enables and
conducts the trade of goods and services through electronic
commerce on the Internet. The digital economy is perceived as a very
substantial driver of economic growth and an increasing source of
work for competition authorities.
• The impact of the digital economy extends beyond information,
goods and services to other areas of the economy as well as
lifestyles more generally.
 Critical implications of
digital economy Innovation

Development implications of Digital Economy can Growth &

Jobs
be seen in the following key areas:
Critical
implications
A. Investing in smart infrastructure. of Digital
B. Empowering society. Economy
C. Unleashing innovation. Empowering
Society
D. Delivering growth and jobs.

Investment in
Infrastructure
Waves of transformation to digital economy

• Big Data/analyticss
• Artificial Intellgence/ machine
First Wave
learning
• Applications (ERP, CRM)

• Cyber-security
Second Wave • Cloud computing
• Broadband

• Sensors/M2M/IoT
Third Wave • 3D Printing
• Robotics
Importance of China-ASEAN
Cooperation
• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) is a regional intergovernmental
organization comprising ten member states in
Southeast Asia. It represents a diverse and
economically dynamic region.
• ASEAN has a combined GDP of over $3 trillion
and a population of more than 650 million,
making it one of the world's largest economic
blocs.
• China has become a crucial trading partner and
investor in ASEAN countries, leading to
increased cooperation in various sectors,
including the digital economy.
Key Trends in the Digital Economy
Artificial
E-commerce and
Digital Payments Big Data and Intelligence (AI) IoT and
Online
and FinTech: Analytics: and Machine Connectivity:
Marketplaces:
Learning:

The growth of Businesses AI and machine

Digital payment
online retail leverage big learning The Internet of
solutions and
and data and technologies Things (IoT) is
fintech
marketplaces analytics to are connecting
companies are
like Alibaba and gain insights transforming devices and
driving financial
Lazada has into consumer industries enabling smart
inclusion and
revolutionized behavior and through cities,
revolutionizing
the way make data- automation and agriculture, and
traditional
consumers driven predictive manufacturing.
banking.
shop. decisions. analytics.
Initiatives and Collaborations

Belt and Road ASEAN-China Free Digital Silk Road: Regional Integration
Initiative (BRI): Trade Agreement: • The Digital Silk Road Efforts:
• China's BRI aims to • The agreement initiative focuses on • ASEAN and China are
enhance connectivity promotes trade and building digital working together to
and trade between investment between infrastructure and foster regional
China and ASEAN ASEAN and China, promoting cross-border integration, harmonize
countries by building including in the digital e-commerce. regulations, and
infrastructure and digital sector. promote digital trade.
connectivity projects.
Case Study 1: Alibaba's
Investment in Lazada
• Alibaba, one of China's e-
commerce giants, invested $1
billion in Lazada, a leading
Southeast Asian online
marketplace.
• This investment allowed Lazada to
expand its operations and leverage
Alibaba's expertise in e-commerce
and logistics.
• The collaboration boosted cross-
border trade and provided
consumers in ASEAN countries with
access to a wider range of products.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY

Case Study 2: Huawei's 5G
Deployment in ASEAN

• Huawei, a prominent Chinese technology

company, has been involved in deploying 5G
infrastructure in several ASEAN countries,
including Malaysia and Thailand.
• The introduction of 5G technology has the
potential to transform industries such as
healthcare, manufacturing, and smart cities.
• This case study demonstrates China's
contribution to enhancing digital connectivity
in the region.
 Case Study 3: Tencent's
Investment in SEA Group

• Tencent, a leading Chinese technology

company, invested in SEA Group, a
Southeast Asian digital conglomerate
known for its e-commerce platform
Shopee and digital wallet service,
AirPay.
• This partnership facilitated the growth
of Shopee and helped SEA Group
expand its digital ecosystem across
ASEAN countries.
• It showcases how Chinese companies
are supporting digital innovation in
Southeast Asia.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

Case Study 4: Singapore-China (Chongqing) Connectivity Initiative (CCI)

• The CCI is a collaborative

project aimed at enhancing
connectivity between Singapore
and China's Chongqing
municipality.
• It includes initiatives related to
digital trade and logistics, such
as the New International Land-
Sea Trade Corridor (NILSTC).
• This case study highlights
infrastructure and trade
facilitation efforts in the digital
economy sphere.
Case Study 5: JD.com's
Agricultural E-commerce
in Indonesia
• JD.com, a Chinese e-commerce company,
partnered with Indonesian farmers to create a
digital agricultural supply chain.
• This collaboration enabled farmers to access a
larger market, improve their income, and
consumers to access fresh produce through e-
commerce platforms.
• The case study emphasizes the positive
impact of digital agriculture initiatives in
ASEAN.
Case Study 6:

Malaysia-China Digital Free Trade Zone (DFTZ)

The DFTZ aims to facilitate cross-

Launched in March 2017, the DFTZ
border e-commerce, encourage
was established as a strategic
SME (Small and Medium-sized
collaboration between Malaysia's
Enterprise) growth, and boost trade
government and Alibaba Group.
between China and Malaysia.

E-commerce Hub: It provides

Malaysian SMEs with a platform to
sell their products to a global
market, particularly China, through
Alibaba's platforms, such as Tmall
and Lazada.
Trade Facilitation: The DFTZ has
significantly reduced customs
clearance times, allowing products
to reach consumers faster.
Challenges and
Future Prospects

Regulatory Challenges:

Data Privacy and

Security:

Infrastructure
Development:

Skills and Workforce

Challenges:
RELATED STUDIES:

DIGITAL ECONOMY AND MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES

Aman, A. (2020). Sustainability off Impact Sourcing

Initiatives In Higher Education for Graduates’
Employability. Sustainability, 13(1), 8.

Dastane, O., Aman, A., Satar, B. M., & Safie, N. (Eds.).

(2023). Digital Natives as a Disruptive Force in Asian
Businesses and Societies. IGI Global.
Global Business Services & Digital
Economy
Global business services (GBS) refers to the integration of services that include information and
communication technology (ICT), finance and accounting (F&A), human resources (HR), and engineering
design and services under one organizational roof to capture additional value through savings from lower
cost resources and access to higher skilled labor in different locations throughout the world.

GBS industry is highly affected by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), with rapid digital transformation
in most of their systems and processes. GBS firms require graduates with adequate digital and data
literacy, innovativeness, and an entrepreneurial spirit.

Higher education institutions (HEIs) in Malaysia produce thousands of graduates every year, but most
graduates are unemployable in GBS firms due to their lack of necessary technical and soft skills
Impact Sourcing

Impact sourcing (ImS), which is an emerging sub-field of GBS, was used to

overcome the mismatch of talent and increase the employability of graduates
in the GBS industry.

ImS is an outsourcing of business or information technology (IT) services to

third parties that employ disadvantaged individuals who do not have many
opportunities for stable employment to provide outsourcing services.

These include those who live in rural areas, those without access to secondary
or tertiary education, and educated individuals in areas of high unemployment.
Aims
• To assess the enabling factors for successful ImS initiatives through
digital economy in order to enhance graduates’ employability.
• The research questions are:
1. What are the conversions, resources and capabilities factors in ImS that
enable the potential and achieved capabilities for graduates’ employability?
2. How do ImS overcome the constraints that inhibit the potential and
achieved capabilities for graduates’ employability?
Sen’s Capability framework
project background
Interview details
Findings
• Conversion factors that may enable individual opportunities or
choices of working as an ImS employee include individual conversion
factors, social conversion factors, environmental conversion factors
and technology conversion factors.
• Resource factors include the need of intangible resources factors
such as continuous job supply, flexibility of working hours, payment
structure and the tangible factors such as reliability of system and
Internet,
• Capabiility factors such as individual, educational and professional
capabilities are the set of potential and achieved functioning which
students are able to achieve.
Conclusion

This study looked at graduates in HEIs who are marginalized because of employment
opportunities. Recent HEI graduates were not hired because they did not have work
experience.

This study contributes to the understanding of the digital economy impacts on

marginalized communities.

In this case, students gain work experience in real business environments and improve
the necessary skills required by future employers, hence improve their employability.
Students also earn some pocket money, thereby improve their socio-economic status.
Implications
• Theoretically, this study will contribute to the development of an
assessment framework for enabling ImS project in relation to
employability of graduates or other marginalized communities.
• Practically, this study suggests that a successful ImS project requires
strong industry-academia collaboration among students, industry
parther and universities.
• Limitation of this study is mainly related to its focus on future graduates
in one university with multiple ImS project. Future study might explore
other ImS project with marginalized communities such as blind and rural
communities in other location.
In Short,

…Digital economy

Bring
opportunities
for marginalized
communities..
Whats Next?...

• The digital economy is a driving force

for growth and innovation in the China-
ASEAN region.
• Collaboration in the digital sphere can
lead to economic prosperity and
technological advancements for all
parties involved.
Thank You
aini@ukm.edu.my