backbone infrastructure (including fibre connections and mobile networks) that can provide universal and low-cost Internet access. As private players are unlikely to undertake the full scope of the build-out, governments will have to drive this effort forward; those that do, could secure a deep and lasting advantage. Additional challenges include establishing a policy framework for data sharing, online privacy, and cybersecurity, as well as supporting MSMEs in technology adoption. H. THE resource revolution 14. ASEAN Member States will need to rethink approaches to natural resource efficiency and resource supply in order to meet imminent challenges. Consider energy as one example: energy demand grows by 80% from today to just under 1100 Mtoe in 2040, accompanying a regional economy that more than tripled in size and a population that rises by almost a quarter to 760 million.26 In addition, ASEAN is acutely exposed to the risks of climate change and to the environmental pressures of groundwater depletion, air pollution, and unsustainable management of fisheries, while also facing fiscal pressure from the mounting cost of resource subsidies and challenges with ensuring access to basic resources such as energy and water. There are large prospects across ASEAN to capture natural resource productivity opportunities spanning energy, water, land, and materials, as well as to develop additional energy resources, such as biofuels, geothermal, biomass, solar, and hydropower. For example, ASEAN is naturally endowed with hydropower: Myanmar alone has potential hydropower production capacity of 108,000 megawatts, and Lao PDR already receives over 13 percent of its energy needs from hydropower.27 I. THE patchwork global economy 15. While the global economic recovery continues after the financial crisis, growth has been subdued and uneven across major economies. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that the global economy could be entering a “new mediocre” period of protracted low growth, undermined by issues such as deleveraging, constraints to private-sector investment, and ageing populations.28 16. There are several implications for ASEAN and the connectivity agenda arising from this “patchwork” global economic outlook. If the global economy does 26 World energy outlook special report: Southeast Asia energy outlook, International Energy Agency and ERIA, September 2015. 27 Ibid. 28 Lagarde: Prevent “New Mediocre” From Becoming “New Reality”, IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings, April 9 2015. MASTER PLAN ON ASEAN CONNECTIVITY 2025 33