ASEAN pushes for a people-centred, people-oriented and resilient Community

9-Mar-2017

Source:  ASEAN Secretariat News

ASEAN pushes for a people-centred, people-oriented and resilient Community

ILOILO CITY, 9 March 2017 – The 17th ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Council Meeting concluded in Iloilo City yesterday. The meeting is important as it reviews the progress of implementation of the ASCC Blueprint 2025, and reviews and endorses the outcome documents for the 30th ASEAN Summit which will be held in April 2017.

Recognising the important role of the ASCC Council in coordinating and promoting collaboration between and among ASCC sectoral bodies and across pillars to address ASEAN community building and cross-cutting issues, the Secretary-General of ASEAN Le Luong Minh said, the successful implementation of their work plans/work programmes will need guidance from Senior Officials for ASCC (SOCA) especially on addressing cross-cutting issues and ensuring alignment with the ASCC Blueprint 2025 and other components of the ASEAN Vision 2025 including the APSC and AEC Blueprints, Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity and the IAI Work Plan III.”

In considering the 30th ASEAN Summit’s outcome documents, the ministers looked forward to the signing by Leaders of the ASEAN Leaders’ Declaration on The Role of Civil Service as Catalyst for Achieving ASEAN Community Vision 2025, and committed support towards the finalisation of the ASEAN Declaration for the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers.

At this meeting, the ministers also endorsed the ASCC Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) framework, including the Guide to M&E of the ASCC Blueprint 2025.

The ministers also exchanged views and supported the ASCC initiative on promoting a Culture of Prevention Agenda which will further harness the power of the people-pillar of ASEAN or ASCC to prevent different forms of violence by addressing their root causes such as socio-economic problems including poverty, inequality, social exclusion, youth unemployment, sense of social injustice, lack of access to education, health care and other basic government services, among others.

The list of ASEAN 50th commemorative activities in the Philippines and across the ASEAN region was presented during the meeting.

The meeting was participated in by ASCC Ministers and Heads of Delegation from all ten ASEAN Member States and Secretary-General of ASEAN.

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Link to Joint Ministerial Statement of the 17th ASCC Council Meeting

Link to Intervention by Secretary-General of ASEAN Le Luong Minh at the 17th ASCC Council Meeting