Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh listens and participates in dialogue on ASEAN Community

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attends the Dialogue between ASEAN leaders and the High-level Working Group on the ASEAN Community Vision after 2025. Photo: Duong Giang/VNA

On May 10, during the 42nd Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and leaders of other countries had a dialogue with representatives of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), Youth, ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ABAC) and the High-Level Task Force (HLTF) on the ASEAN Community Vision after 2025.

* Recognizing the "stature" of ASEAN, the growth engine of the region, AIPA member parliaments are committed to working with governments to promote recovery, enhance connectivity, integration and inclusion. In the face of complex impacts and consequences of geopolitical changes, AIPA is ready to join hands with ASEAN to overcome difficulties and build a bright future for the region.

With the theme of equitable and inclusive digital development in the region, ASEAN youth representatives recommended that governments quickly adapt to and embrace digital technology advances, create forums to encourage the exchange and learning of digital skills among ASEAN youth, thereby creating more favorable conditions for inclusive digital transformation and improving the quality of human resources. Youth representatives proposed four groups of solutions, including building digital infrastructure, improving digital education, and supporting financial access to help youth participate more widely in this field.

Realizing that ASEAN is becoming a growth hub, ABAC delegates emphasized that ASEAN possesses many advantages such as annual economic growth of up to 5%; the world's third largest labor market; advantages in natural resources; a growing digital economy, an open consumer market and long-term development potential... To maximize these advantages, ABAC delegates proposed 5 key areas, including facilitating investment and trade, enhancing food security, self-reliance in healthcare, digital transformation and sustainable development. ABAC is also drafting the ASEAN Business Roadmap, aiming to promote regional economic reform with the leading role of public-private partnerships.

Dialogue between ASEAN leaders and the High-Level Working Group on the ASEAN Community Vision after 2025. Photo: Duong Giang/VNA

The HLTF on the ASEAN Community Vision beyond 2025 presented to ASEAN leaders the key elements of the vision, with the overarching orientation of building a united, self-reliant, dynamic, inclusive ASEAN Community with the capacity to respond effectively and adapt flexibly to strategic movements in the region and the world. The HLTF also highlighted major trends affecting ASEAN and challenges that ASEAN needs to address in the next phase such as climate change, pandemics, development gaps, population aging, etc. The delegates also proposed a number of steps to develop the ASEAN Vision beyond 2025 document.

* Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh highly appreciated the participation, contributions and sharing of opinions of the groups in an open, sincere and substantive spirit.

In a dialogue with AIPA representatives, the Prime Minister outlined three orientations to enhance the effectiveness of coordination between the legislative and executive branches. First, strengthen coordination to perfect institutions and harmonize laws to remove barriers and clear bottlenecks, especially in the fields of trade and investment. Second, review and strengthen legal frameworks to facilitate the free movement of labor within the bloc. Third, in the face of increasingly complex changes in the international and regional situation, AIPA continues to unite and closely coordinate with ASEAN in protecting and promoting ASEAN's common principles and stances, especially respecting norms of conduct and complying with international law.

Expressing his joy in the dialogue with the youth, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized the pioneering and proactive role of the youth, encouraging the younger generation to participate in solving social issues, taking the lead in volunteer activities, and bringing positive changes to the community. The Prime Minister affirmed that Vietnam is committed to working with ASEAN to create the most favorable conditions for the youth to develop, to be heard, and to participate in deciding the future of the ASEAN Community. Accordingly, the Prime Minister proposed to turn the ASEAN Community into a "learning community" to develop skills for ASEAN youth and a "creative community" so that ASEAN can become a startup incubator to help the youth promote their creativity.

Discussing ABAC’s proposals and recommendations, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh highly appreciated the role of businesses in promoting trade and investment facilitation, digital transformation, sustainable and inclusive development. To create a breakthrough for the ASEAN Economic Community, the Prime Minister outlined the “Three Togethers” orientation with businesses, which are to perfect institutions together, develop strategic infrastructure together, and build high-quality human resources together, especially in digital transformation, green transformation, and high technology.

Recognizing the efforts of the HLTF, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh requested the group to have a breakthrough mindset, with a creative and flexible approach, thereby outlining strategic directions for ASEAN development until 2045. The Prime Minister asked the HLTF to closely follow the "three breakthroughs": breakthroughs in connectivity, in promoting growth and in human development.

* On the morning of May 11, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and leaders of ASEAN countries will attend the 42nd ASEAN Summit's retreat to discuss international and regional issues of mutual concern.

According to VNA