ASEAN Framework Agreement on Multimodal Transport (AFAMT) and ASEAN’s Sustainable Multimodal Transport: Exploring Correlations between Legal Harmonisation and Logistics Performance
Keywords:
ASEAN Framework Agreement on Multimodal Transport (AFAMT), Legal Harmonisation, Logistics Performance, Sustainable DevelopmentAbstract
This study examines the correlations between the implementation progress of the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Multimodal Transport (AFAMT) and improvements in logistics performance, including potential contributions to sustainable economic development within ASEAN. By employing doctrinal legal analysis of the AFAMT’s provisions and a descriptive review of the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index (LPI) data, this study highlights associative patterns between the degree of the AFAMT implementation and reductions in trade transaction costs and improved logistics efficiency. Although no causal relationship is asserted, the findings suggest that ASEAN member states (AMSs) implementing the AFAMT experienced concurrent improvements in logistics performance, while also promoting ASEAN’s broader sustainable objectives.
The study demonstrates that legal coherence creates conditions conducive to regional economic integration, competitiveness, and green economy. It proposes that accelerating full-scale implementation of the AFAMT, alongside targeted legal and policy reforms, could strengthen ASEAN’s logistics integration and sustainability objectives.
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