KUALA LUMPUR — When I grew up, one of the most fascinating films on time travel was Back to the Future. I thought about this film as Malaysia finished hosting the Economic Ministers from Asean and its Dialogue Partners, for the 57th Asean Economic Ministers’ Meeting and Related Meetings.

Imagine this: the year is 2045. Many youths are gainfully employed in high-tech industries or high-value services within Asean – a globally respected economic powerhouse that became the world’s fourth largest economy by 2030.

The region is agile, inclusive, and digitally integrated. Every employable youth is benefiting from Asean’s well-established, seamless and secure digital economy.

Almost everyone – from elderlies to toddlers – is living and breathing ‘digital’. Most public education and healthcare services are delivered on-demand, online or via apps. AI helps people live longer, healthier, more productive lives.

Food security is a given, supported by AI-powered agrotech. As most of us embrace a healthy lifestyle, public healthcare funding has increasingly been channeled to improving education, as well as promoting entrepreneurship and creativity.

Thanks to the critical mass of e-mobility, the region’s air could never be cleaner as all Asean Member States achieved their Net Zero goal well ahead of their target timeline.

Businesses of all sizes flourish, particularly the MSMEs – thanks to advances in Asean’s digital economy ecosystem. The region successfully unlocked USD2 trillion of digital economic value by 2030, empowering roughly 70 million MSMEs through the creation of a modern, comprehensive, and interoperable regional digital economy framework. As a result, trade among ASEAN countries has increased to a respectable 80 per cent, a reflection of improved prosperity among its Member States.