ASEAN checklist: Who's ready for the AEC?

Is Thailand ready for the AEC? Are you? That's the subject of a new English-language segment on Channel 3's Asia Connect. Test yourself. If you can understand it, your English is probably ready. If you can't....

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ASEAN checklist: Who's ready for the AEC?

ASEAN checklist appears each Wednesday on Channel 3 during the noontime segment of Asia Connect. The presenters are Michael Chick, a man with extensive media experience ranging from reporting to advertising to documentary production and Nillaya Treeworawat, a Thammasat graduate in International Relations who appears regularly on Channel 3's Asia Connect and World Connect.

In this first segment which aired on Wednesday, the first item on the checklist is, appropriately enough, the English language. Test yourself. If you can understand it (without the Thai subtitles), your English should be good enough to communicate with your ASEAN colleagues. If not, make sure you come to our learning channel every day.

Checklist: a list of all the things you need to do or consider เธฃเธฒเธขเธเธฒเธฃเธ•เธฃเธงเธเธชเธญเธ

Sawadikhrap/kha. Welcome to the new ASEAN Checklist Programme.

We all know that the implementation of the AEC (ASEAN Economic Community) would happen in exactly 6 months. And that means, the tighter integration of ASEAN Nations. The first question which comes to mind is, how would these 10 countries talk to each other?

Yes. What would be their “Lingua Franca”?

Well, we need to look no further than from our country leaders themselves. All ASEAN meetings have been conducted in the English Language, and have been since the formation of ASEAN 48 years ago, in 1967. In fact, English has been listed as the Official Working-Language of ASEAN.

So how can the media help in improving the language skills of ASEAN people? Let’s listen to the Head of the Communications Department of Naresuan University:

“Not only the government has to do this, I think the private sector has to do this also, If they know that their business will benefit people in Thailand who can use English as a second language. If you want to do business with the other countries, (they) use English as their communication. I think they (government and private sector) have to get involved in this; Otherwise we can not survive in the AEC..”

Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar and the Philippines already have a head start, as they have been broadcasting all-English Channels for more than half a century already.

Really? That long?

Yes, and all Brunei people speak very fluent English as well.

Oh Wow !! Looks like the other 5 countries have a lot of catching up to do then.

So what’s the verdict?

Well, half of ASEAN gets a huge thumbs up, while the other 5 countries need to “Pull Up their Socks”. Unfortunately, that’s all the time we have for today. See you next week, on ASEAN Checklist. Swadikhrap/kha....

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