Selangor Young Entrepreneurs Urged To Expand Into ASEAN Markets – Tengku Amir Shah
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 14 (Bernama) — Young entrepreneurs in Selangor should look beyond domestic markets and view ASEAN cities such as Jakarta, Bangkok, Manila and Ho Chi Minh City as natural destinations for business expansion, said Raja Muda Selangor Tengku Amir Shah Ibni Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj.
Although ASEAN is one region, businesses continue to operate as though they were in separate markets, limiting opportunities for regional growth, he said.
“At a time when supply chains are shifting, and larger economies are competing openly for investment, technology and talent, fragmentation carries a price.
“Regional collaboration is therefore not a courtesy extended between neighbours. It is an economic necessity,” he said in his keynote address at the Selangor ASEAN Business Conference (SABC) 2026 here today.
Tengku Amir Shah also graced the opening ceremony of the Selangor International Business Summit (SIBS) 2026, organised by Invest Selangor Bhd and hosted by the Selangor state government.
The real test of ASEAN integration is not how often the region spoke of a single market, but whether an entrepreneur in one member country could genuinely build a business serving the other 10 markets.
“Technology will be central to that future, but technology without people who can use it well builds nothing. This is where education carries its weight — not simply as a credential, but as preparation to build, to sell, to lead and to compete,” he said.
He said ASEAN’s young population is often regarded as one of the region’s greatest advantages, but its economic value depends on the opportunities available to young people.
“Give them the tools, the training and the market access, and demographic promise becomes productive capacity. Connect that capacity across borders, and it becomes a regional advantage,” he said.
SABC 2026 marks the 10th edition of Selangor’s collaboration. Under the theme “Selangor: The Gateway to ASEAN’s Youth and Future”, SABC 2026 places deliberate emphasis on the region’s next generation as a core economic variable rather than a social agenda.
ASEAN is home to more than 213 million people aged 15 to 34, representing roughly one-third of its population. This demographic cohort will define labour market transformation, enterprise formation and digital adoption across Southeast Asia over the next decade.
Harnessing this demographic advantage requires stronger alignment among policy, capital, and talent development at both national and subnational levels.
“As SABC enters its second decade, our ambition should not simply be to make Selangor a gateway to ASEAN. It should be to ensure that, through Selangor, a new generation is ready to lead ASEAN,” said Tengku Amir Shah.
— BERNAMA
