ASEAN think-tanks meet to discuss achieving ASEAN Vision and ASCC Blueprint 2025

Source:  ASEAN Secretariat

ASEAN think-tanks meet to discuss achieving ASEAN Vision and ASCC Blueprint 2025

JAKARTA, 22 February 2019 - Researchers from ASEAN-based thinks-tanks and academic institutions met at the ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC) yesterday to exchange views and generate ideas on achieving the objectives of ASEAN Vision 2025 and the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Blueprint 2025, as well as on the raising of ASEAN Awareness in the region.

The First Consultative Meeting with Think-Tanks, held by the ASEC’s ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Department, was also attended by representatives from the ASEAN University Network, UNICEF and UN Women.

The meeting, which was in-line with ASCC’s community building efforts to build a creative, innovation and responsive ASEAN, provided an interactive platform to discuss issues relating to increasing the knowledge capacity of the ASCC Pillar. It also provided an opportunity for these academics and researchers to network among themselves.

“We are at a critical moment and participation from think-tanks will assist in shaping our direction,” said Kung Phoak, Deputy Secretary-General for ASEAN for ASCC.  He strongly encouraged the participants to share issues of relevance to the ASCC, in light of emerging regional development and global megatrends, such as climate change.

In the one-day meeting, various issues like the growth of digital economy and utilisation of technology were identified to have an impact on ASEAN Member States’ employment structure. In particular, the Meeting discussed the importance of harnessing technology, such as artificial intelligence (AI), to address data gaps, which would be useful especially in times of disasters.  While recognising that gadgets and information communication technology (ICT) have been commonly used by the ASEAN people daily, the participants reckoned that greater concrete steps need to be adopted to also support those populace who do not have access to such information know-how.

To increase greater ASEAN awareness, the participants concurred on the importance for key ASEAN documents to be in both English and in the national local languages for wider accessibility.  Other relevant recommendations include for a successive annual forum to be convened and to share on the upcoming priorities of the respective ASCC sectoral bodies with the think-tanks and research institutions.

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