(VOVWORLD) - The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has accelerated implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision until 2025. The 27th Conference of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community, themed “ASEAN A.C.T.: Addressing Challenges Together”, held on April 1 underscores ASEAN’s spirit of togetherness as one community with a common will in its collective endeavor to overcome challenges facing the region.
 Cambodia's Minister of Education, Youth, and Sports is Chairman of ASCC 2022. (photo: baodansinh.vn) |
The 27th conference of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community discussed priorities and proposed documents to be submitted to the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summit in November. The delegates exchanged views on ASEAN’s development orientations to realize the ASEAN Community Vision 2025, which strengthens people-to-people connectivity, takes a human-centered approach to sustainable development, and leaves no one behind.
ASEAN promotes self-reliance
The Hanoi Declaration on the ASEAN Community’s post-2025 Vision, adopted by the ASEAN leaders at the 37th ASEAN Summit in 2020, affirmed that implementation of the post-2025 Vision will be carried out in a comprehensive, realistic, balanced, inclusive, and coordinated manner, using a community-wide approach to coordinating ASEAN’s inter-pillar and inter-sector efforts to address the growing complexity of the opportunities and challenges facing ASEAN.
The ASEAN Community Vision in post-2025 clearly states that ASEAN will promote economic linkages as the basis for the next forms of association of the ASEAN Community.
Amidst regional and global complications, ASEAN continues to promote its role as a driving force in dialogue and trust-building for peace and security in the region.
ASEAN is committed to building an ASEAN Community for the people, making people the focus of development, ensuring balanced and sustainable development across regions, nations, and social strata, and guaranteeing no one is left behind.
 Vietnamese Minister of Education and Training Dao Ngoc Dung told the conference that Vietnam supports Cambodia's Chair of ASEAN Year 2022. (Photo: VGP/Thu Cuc) |
ASEAN unites to respond to challenges
It is estimated that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a loss of 3.3% of ASEAN's GDP. It has challenged the health systems of many countries, pushed many economies into recession, and made millions of people unemployed.
ASEAN countries have united and cooperated to respond to the pandemic by establishing the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund, the Regional Reserve of Medical Supplies for Public Health Emergencies, the ASEAN General Recovery Framework, and a three-pillar plan to help people and businesses recover from the pandemic and stabilize their economic situation.
Programs have been carried out to pursue national, regional, and global priorities, such as ASEAN’s Culture of Prevention, the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Plan, and the Strategy on the 4th Industrial Revolution.
Individual governments have adopted policies to help workers, businesses, and special interest groups. Vaccination campaigns in every nation have quickly restored production.
The results achieved have proved the effectiveness of protecting workers, building an open and adaptive society, and eliminating social inequalities.
ASEAN’s initiatives to strengthen the role of youth are also contributing to building a cohesive and sustainable ASEAN Community. The ASEAN Vision 2025 has been vigorously implemented and conveys a strong message: Solidarity is the basis of cooperation, the key to ASEAN's successes, and the main pillar of the ASEAN Community.