Thanks to improved connectivity, travelers now have the option to hop on a plane, or take a ferry, or a bus, that could bring them to their pick of destinations within the subregion. Photo credit: iStock/maroot sudchinda.
If BIMP-EAGA had a report card, it would probably get an “A” for improving connectivity across the subregion. A remote kampung in Borneo is that much closer to a barangay in Mindanao, just because travelers now have the option to hop on a plane, or take a ferry, or a bus, that could bring them to their pick of destinations within the subregion.
True, there may not be direct flights or regular ferry and bus routes available for all destinations, but connectivity has undeniably improved since BIMP-EAGA was established in 1994.
“One very prominent and invisible impact of the BIMP-EAGA since its inception over 3 decades ago was certainly the enhanced and increased connectivity across the focus areas of the subregion,” said Assistant Secretary Romeo Montenegro of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA). “It definitely enabled the movement of people, and of course, facilitated trade.”
With its vision to spur growth in remote and less developed areas of the subregion, improving connectivity is a key development pillar for the four member countries—Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Enhancing connectivity will make it easier and faster to travel within and outside BIMP-EAGA, improve the flow of goods and services, create a conducive business climate, and raise the quality of life of local communities.
Over the years, BIMP-EAGA countries have invested billions to build the infrastructure to improve connectivity. In the last 8 years, the subregion’s rolling pipeline of priority infrastructure projects (PIPs) has increased to 210, with 52 successfully completed and an additional 158 in various stages of implementation. These projects include roads, railways and bridges, inland transport services, airports, seaports, power and energy infrastructure, information and communication technology (ICT), trade facilitation (including customs, immigration, quarantine, and security systems; economic zones; and industrial parks), and urban and border town development.
With the infrastructure in place, the subregion has seen an increase in trade and investments and tourism. In 2023, domestic investments grew to $12.4 billion from $9.5 billion in 2022. Also in 2023, foreign direct investments amounted to $19.5 billion, while trade balance was recorded at $60.2 billion. Tourist arrivals, meanwhile, rose to 126.4 million in 2023 from 114.8 million in 2022.
The BIMP-EAGA economy also grew. In 2023, the combined gross domestic product (GDP) of BIMP-EAGA economies stood at $401.6 billion (at current prices), accounting for 18.2% of the four member countries’ GDP. In contrast, the subregion’s combined GDP was recorded at $287.3 billion in 2017, accounting for 17.4% of the member countries’ GDP.
More accessibility leads to progress
“Efforts such as enhancing transportation networks, logistics improvements, and establishing zones have led to heightened economic engagement, lowered trade obstacles, and reinforced infrastructure links, within the region,” said Sayid Irwan, country director of the BIMP-EAGA Business Council Indonesia. “These initiatives have boosted sectors such as farming, tourism, and energy; while fostering progress in underdeveloped regions lay the groundwork for ASEAN unity and long-term growth.”
Carl Moosom, former chairman of the BIMP-EAGA Business Council Sabah, agreed. “Today, we have seen the good results of our governments’ cooperation,” he said. “It’s the connectivity. Either directly or indirectly, we are more accessible to one another than ever before. Land, sea, air, virtual, or not, we are more in tune to one another compared to before the time of the financial crisis of 1997.”
Connectivity was a major issue for the subregion in the first few years of the cooperation program.
Susan Chang, one of the pioneers who has been with BIMP-EAGA since the beginning and is now country director for the BIMP-EAGA Business Council Malaysia, recalled that air travel was particularly challenging. “To get from Kota Kinabalu to Davao City, we would need to fly to Kuala Lumpur to Manila to Davao City. This journey would take us 1 to 2 days,” she said.
Things have changed. “I experienced improvements in transport—air, sea, and land—and communication infrastructure, facilitating better connectivity among the subregion. Improvement in roads, bridges, airports, and seaports have also impacted the local economies,” she said.
Montenegro said BIMP-EAGA paved the way for the national government to support Mindanao in terms of developing infrastructure, such as ports and seaports. In turn, this allowed the island region to be better integrated into the larger economy, not just in the Philippines, but in the larger context of ASEAN regional integration. “This is the same reality that had been achieved, also positively in the other focus areas of Malaysia, Indonesia, and of course the entire country of Brunei Darussalam,” he said.
Landmark agreements
The turning point can be traced to the signing in 2007 of separate memorandums of understanding (MOU) for the development of air, sea, and land linkages to bolster connectivity. These transport-related MOUs were considered landmark documents, even in the broader ASEAN context, as they pursued the implementation, on a test-bed basis, of various ASEAN agreements.
Susanna Chew, former head of the BIMP-EAGA Facilitation Center, said the signing of the MOUs were among her proudest moments at the secretariat. "You could actually see the actual movement of people and goods improve [after the MOUs were signed]," she said.
Ronald Sison, a Mindanao-based consultant who has been involved in the development of BIMP-EAGA from the start, said establishing transport connectivity by air, sea, and land across the subregion became an important cooperation initiative. “I remember how the BIMP-EAGA heads of state and subnational leaders always referred to the beginnings of EAGA as a ‘reconnection’ of economic relations among their peoples in the eastern parts of their countries, mainly borne out of ancient historical, cultural, and trading ties. In a sense, such reconnection is probably the first important value of the subregional cooperation.”
With the MOU on cross-border movement of commercial buses and coaches, bus services connecting major cities in Borneo were launched. These services have made remote areas more accessible to tourists and contributed to economic development by creating jobs and supporting local businesses, particularly in Sabah, Sarawak, and Brunei Darussalam, said Thomas Koh, country director of the BIMP-EAGA Business Council Brunei Darussalam. “Increased mobility has fostered cultural understanding and collaboration among diverse communities within the BIMP-EAGA subregion.”
Under the air agreement, designated airports were accorded fifth freedom traffic rights that subsequently encouraged airlines to launch new air services. Fifth freedom rights allow an airline to stop in a country other than its own and pick up passengers before flying to another destination or country.
Seaports were designated as priority ports of entry for subregional trade under the deal on sea linkages. Subsequently, member countries upgraded their ports. The rise of inter-island ferry services and regional air routes has been crucial in linking remote and less accessible areas, further enhancing connectivity.
The transport agreements were instrumental in identifying key ports, airports, and land borders that streamlined trade and eased business operations, said Koh. He welcomed in particular the construction and expansion of key bridges across the subregion. “These infrastructure developments are among the most visible and impactful, making cross-border travel and logistics more seamless by directly enhancing the movement of goods and people, optimizing trade flows, and reducing logistics costs,” he said. “As a result, these advancements have reinforced BIMP-EAGA's role as a key player in the broader ASEAN economic landscape.”