Five-fold gross domestic product (GDP) growth has positioned ASEAN for next wave of digital investment, the new GSMA report found Tuesday.

According to the report, the ASEAN markets are at a digital crossroads, with mobile technologies set to shape the region’s next wave of growth.

Thus, GSMA calls on governments and industry to close critical policy, infrastructure and skills gaps to deliver on ASEAN’s digital ambitions and the ASEAN Connectivity Strategic Plan.

It also calls on governments and industry to close critical policy, infrastructure and skills gaps to deliver on ASEAN’s digital ambitions and the ASEAN Connectivity Strategic Plan.

The study sets out three priorities to accelerate progress: boosting investment in 5G, fiber and cloud infrastructure; harmonizing data, trade and cyber-security frameworks to enable seamless cross-border services; and strengthening regional and international cooperation to share expertise and build capacity.

Tracing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)’s transformation since 2000 the report, and based on the GSMA Intelligence Digital Nations Index, the report highlighted the bloc’s economic rise from $737 billion to more than $4 trillion in 2024 – growth that could be multiplied through digital innovation.

“ASEAN has already delivered a five-fold expansion in economic output this century, yet our Digital Nations research shows that progress is uneven,” said Julian Gorman, Head of Asia Pacific, GSMA.

According to him, Singapore leads the 2025 ASEAN digital readiness index, with scores across the region showing a broad range of preparedness levels.

“ASEAN has advanced in digital adoption, but gaps in readiness, regulation, and skills remain,

“Member states should strengthen digital ecosystems by addressing these challenges,” he added.

It is noted that Singapore leads the 2025 Digital Nations Index with an aggregate score of 88 / 100; Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand each score above 60.

On average, the “people” component records the strongest performance across ASEAN; “infrastructure” and “innovation” remain comparatively weaker.

The region faces a mobile-internet usage gap of approximately 285 million people, representing more than two in every five citizens, said the report.

“The ASEAN digital economy is a story of explosive growth and boundless potential,

“But to maintain this competitive advantage the region must further refine and accelerate its coordinated approach to economic policy and infrastructure investment,” The GSMA’s Chief Financial Officer, Louise Easterbrook, said in his opening keynote.

“The choices we make today on affordability, skills and trust are vital if we are to digitally transform the day-to-day lives of the 680 million people in the region,

“We need governments to be the architects, the mobile industry to be the engineers and innovators, and all of us, as a community, to work together at every level, to build this future,” he added.

The report also stresses that converting today’s four-trillion-dollar economy into tomorrow’s digitally powered opportunity demands concerted action on three fronts.

First, the region must channel far greater investment into 5G, fibre and cloud infrastructure.

Second, it should align data, trade and cyber-security rules so that services flow seamlessly across borders.

Third, deeper international and intra-ASEAN co-operation is required to share expertise and build capacity where it is most needed.

Collective progress on these priorities will enable every community, business and government in South-East Asia to realize the full promise of the digital age, said the report.

The study also notes that 2025 is a pivotal year, with several existing development frameworks concluding and a new ASEAN Connectivity Strategic Plan 2026–2035 in preparation.

Implementing the report’s recommendations, GSMA Intelligence contends, will be critical to meeting the ambitions of the forthcoming plan and the wider ASEAN Community Vision 2045.

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