Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN Dr. AKP Mochtan addresses the forum in Jakarta, Indonesia, on April 29 (Photo: VNA) Jakarta (VNA) – An annual forum held in Jakarta,Indonesia, on April 29 highlighted social organisations’ role in promoting thebuilding of the ASEAN Community.
The third forum of social organisationsassociated with ASEAN gathered representatives of the member countries’permanent missions, research institutes and social organisations.
Opening the event, Deputy Secretary-General ofASEAN Dr. AKP Mochtan said the forum matched the theme “AdvancingPartnership for Sustainability” put forth by Thailand, which holds the ASEANChair this year. To ensure the ASEAN Community building efforts are effective,it is necessary to have the support and cooperation of all relevant sides tocontribute to the region’s integration.
An important factor in the community building isto improve public awareness of the importance of ASEAN integration to the lifeof 635 million people in the region. In 2018, the ASEAN Secretariat conducted asurvey of people’s awareness of ASEAN to evaluate communications efforts.Results showed that the awareness of the ASEAN Community and its three pillarsremained relatively low, he noted.
In an interview with the Vietnam News Agency onthe sidelines of the forum, Ambassador Phaspron Sangasubana, head of Thailand’spermanent mission to ASEAN, emphasised the importance of social entities in thebuilding of a people-centred ASEAN community.
Echoing this, Executive Director of theJakarta-based Centre for Southeast Asian Studies Arisman said the countries areworking towards promoting people’s connectivity in the building of the ASEANCommunity, especially with the engagement of multiple parties, including civilorganisations, the media and associations.
Considering social organisations as a knowledgebridge between ASEAN and people, the ASEAN Secretariat pledged to continuestepping up cooperation among relevant sides so as to boost the building of apeople-centred ASEAN community.
Founded on August 8, 1967, the Association ofSoutheast Asian Nations (ASEAN) comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia,Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore andVietnam.
The ASEAN Community came into being on December31, 2015.
The ASEAN Vision 2025 was adopted earlier the same year, focusing onbuilding a people-centred community.-VNA
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