213 million possibilities across Asean

When more than 8,000 young people gathered for the ASEAN Youth Entrepreneurship Summit last Oct. 12, the scale of the moment was impossible to miss. But what really made an impact on me was what the size of the crowd meant: thousands of ideas, ambitions, and possible businesses, and a glimpse of what ASEAN can achieve when its young people are given the chance to lead.

The summit, which we at the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) put together with the help of SM Cares and the Global Peace Foundation, brought the conversation about youth entrepreneurship to the regional stage. It’s one of the highlights of our chairmanship of ASEAN in 2026, and a clear statement that young people are the future of Southeast Asia.

Some people call the Philippines a poor man of a nation. The young Filipinos gathered that day can change that perception, because there were so many of them there who are hardworking and can start businesses. They had great speakers that day, from my daughter Bella, who talked about starting her own business while she was still in school, to Jollibee Group Global President and CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong, who shared the company’s journey from a Filipino-founded business to a multinational restaurant group.

Talks from real-life businessmen can inspire young minds and help connect what they learn in the classroom with real-life experiences. It gives them context for examining how businesses develop ideas, build brands, and, in the case of Jollibee, open markets in other countries. This is the point of the ASEAN flavor to this year’s youth summit,: to open these young entrepreneurs to the prospect of opportunities, not just in their immediate neighborhoods, but in the larger ASEAN community.

Across ASEAN, young entrepreneurs are finding new ways to solve problems and create opportunity. They are using digital tools to reach customers, developing creative businesses, exploring climate solutions, and connecting markets across borders. Yet talent and determination alone are not always enough. Many aspiring founders still need access to mentorship, financing, networks, practical guidance, and regional markets. The summit was an opportunity to talk honestly about those barriers, and to imagine what we might accomplish by working together to lower them for the young entrepreneurs of ASEAN.

That work begins with a change in how we think about youth participation. Too often, it has meant inviting young people into a room without inviting them to be part of the decision-making. We ask them to listen, but not to shape the conversation. We celebrate their energy, but hesitate to trust their judgment.

Entrepreneurship demands something better. Young people need more than encouragement; they need meaningful opportunities to test ideas, meet collaborators, learn from experience, and turn ambition into action. A strong entrepreneurial ecosystem cannot be built by young founders alone. It depends on cooperation among business leaders, governments, educators, investors, community organizations, and the entrepreneurs themselves. And it must connect people not only within their own countries, but across the region.

A central milestone of the summit was the ASEAN Youth Entrepreneurship Action Agenda, developed with the Philippine Young Entrepreneurs Association. Its purpose is to help turn a broad commitment into practical areas for collaboration. Among the issues it addresses are startup financing, education and mentorship, digital innovation and artificial intelligence, the creative economy, climate-focused enterprises, and cross-border e-commerce.

No agenda, by itself, can guarantee that a business will succeed. But a shared framework can help us ask better questions, identify where support is missing, and coordinate efforts that might otherwise remain scattered. Most importantly, the process must continue beyond a single day. A summit can open doors; sustained partnership is what keeps them open.

That is also the spirit behind MANA – Mentoring ASEAN’s Next Advocates – a youth legacy initiative of ASEAN-BAC Philippines. MANA reflects a belief that investment in young leaders should create lasting relationships, knowledge, and opportunities that young people can carry forward.

Other platforms can complement that effort. While the Summit is designed to encourage aspiring entrepreneurs to explore the startup ecosystem and find their first points of connection, the ASEAN Young Entrepreneurs Carnival, happening on Nov. 6, can help established young entrepreneurs strengthen networks, build collaborations, and pursue growth. Together with regional marketplaces and other support initiatives, such platforms can help founders move from inspiration to participation to sustainable enterprise.

The optimism I took from the Summit is grounded in the young people themselves. It was in their willingness to share ideas, ask questions, and imagine businesses that respond to real needs. It was also in the knowledge that entrepreneurship can create livelihoods, introduce useful solutions, and help communities become more resilient.

There are 213 million young people across ASEAN. That figure is a reminder of the region’s immense human potential: 213 million possibilities, voices, and chances to make a difference. We should not expect every young person to become an entrepreneur. But every young person should have the opportunity to develop their skills, explore their ideas and contribute to the region’s future.

More than 8,000 young people in one arena could not represent all of ASEAN’s youth. But they offered a powerful glimpse of what is possible when young people come together and are taken seriously. The task now is to carry that energy forward – in mentorship, policy, financing, education, and partnerships that last. With hope, we will succeed in capturing their voices as we meet with the region’s leaders at the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit on Nov. 14 and 15.

ASEAN’s future will be shaped by many forces. One of its greatest strengths is the creativity and determination of its young people. If we give them room to lead – and the support to turn ideas into action – the future of entrepreneurship in our region is bright.