A welcoming dance is performed at the opening ceremony of the 28th ASCC Council Meeting in Phnom Penh on October 13. SPM
At the 28th ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Council Meeting on October 13, Prime Minister Hun Sen urged the council to implement strategies which focus on socio- economic recovery post-pandemic. He also called for strengthened ASEAN solidarity on a number of key priorities.
The in-person meeting, the first since the pandemic began, was attended by ASCC ministers, ASEAN secretary-general and delegates from ASEAN member states.
Hun Sen said it was an important forum for all parties to assess progress and identify challenges, opportunities and related tasks to restore and accelerate ASEAN socio-cultural development.
“ASEAN is a multicultural community that requires everyone to work together, regardless of differences, in order to achieve greater understanding among our peoples – especially the youth – to promote resilience and mutual understanding in line with ASEAN’s core spirit of ‘one vision, one identity and one community’,” he said.
To achieve this goal, as this year’s ASEAN chair, Cambodia has set the theme “ASEAN ACT: Addressing Challenges Together”.
“Thanks to the way we have worked together to implement the ASCC 2025 Master Plan, I am very proud of the remarkable progress we have made. This includes promoting social protection for migrant workers, safety and social welfare, promoting entrepreneurship, women, industry, innovation and culture,” he said.
He added that success in controlling the Covid-19 pandemic offered the opportunity to move towards the full resumption of socio-economic activity, as well as to support recovery strategies.
“On this basis, cooperation within the ASCC framework plays an increasingly important role in promoting joint efforts to further promote economic development, security and political stability in the region as well as strengthening ASEAN unity through a focus on our priorities,” he said.
These priorities include strengthening ASEAN values, awareness and identity; promoting human resource development and women empowerment; enhance health, wellbeing and social protection; and strengthen ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community’s institutional capacity and effectiveness.
He also stressed that in order to ensure resilient and sustainable socio-economic development in the region, ASEAN needs to strengthen cooperation and increase attention to the protection and development of human resources through digitalisation, development of public health and social protection systems to prepare for crises and improve education and skills development.
“I hope that all ASEAN members will adopt the ASEAN Declaration on the Mobility of Social Security Benefits for Migrant Workers in the ASEAN Region,” Hun Sen said.
Minister of Education, Youth and Sport Hang Chuon Naron, who chairs the ASCC, noted that the proposed priorities, initiatives and results will be reflected in the outcome document which will be approved and noted at the forthcoming 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits.
“These initiatives respond well to many challenges and emergencies –those that are happening now and those that may occur in the future. Today’s meeting discusses the progress of these initiatives,” he said.
Chuon Naron also stressed that enhanced cooperation in the health sector is warranted to meet the urgent need for health emergency preparedness.
“We should use this opportunity to accelerate agreement on the ASEAN Centre for Public Health Emergencies and Possible Infectious Diseases. ASEAN must be well prepared for future health emergencies,” he said.
At the opening ceremony of the meeting, Hun Sen also highlighted the role of the youth in building a responsible ASEAN community.
He said that young people will play an important role in adopting new technologies in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, or Industry 4.0, which will be the catalyst for the region’s socio-economic development. At the same time, Cambodia has initiated preparation of the “ASEAN Leaders’ Statement on the Year of ASEAN Youth 2022”.
Thong Mengdavid, a research associate at the Asian Vision Institute’s Mekong Centre for Strategic Studies, said cultural factors are central to promoting mutual learning and trust.
He said culture is a bridge to the development of peace and harmony in the region. Hun Sen, he added, clearly understands its value, especially as the region suffers from crises such as Covid-19, the global inflation crisis and major power rivalry.
“The ASCC has an important role to play in monitoring the activities of all ASEAN members in carrying out development activities, building economic communities and promoting regional stability,” he added.
