Overview
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK) was conferred Dialogue Partner status by ASEAN at the 54th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting (AMM) held on 2 August 2021. The Plan of Action (POA) to Implement the ASEAN-UK Dialogue Partnership (2022-2026) was adopted at the ASEAN Post Ministerial Conference (PMC) Plus One Session with the UK on 4 August 2022. The POA sets out the broad direction of ASEAN-UK partnership across political and security cooperation, economic cooperation, and socio-cultural cooperation.
ASEAN-UK economic relations continue to grow, with the UK ranking as ASEAN’s 11th largest trade partner and 4th highest source of inward foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2024. Merchandise trade between ASEAN and the UK stood at 38.8 billion in 2024 while FDI inflow from the UK to ASEAN was recorded at USD 18.7 billion in the same year.
Priority Areas of Cooperation
On the economic front, the First ASEAN Economic Ministers–United Kingdom (AEM-UK) Consultation held on 15 September 2021 adopted the Joint Ministerial Declaration on Future Economic Cooperation, which outlines priority areas of cooperation that include:
- Regional Economic Integration
- Trade and Investment
- Finance
- Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)
- Information Communications Technology (ICT) and Digital Integration
- Tourism
- Energy
- Agriculture and Forestry
- Science, Technology, and Innovation
ASEAN and UK subsequently endorsed the Work Plan to Implement the Joint Ministerial Declaration on Future Economic Cooperation during the 2nd AEM-UK Consultation on 10 November 2022. The said Work Plan is regularly updated and reported to the Senior Economic Officials Meeting – UK (SEOM-UK) Consultation and the AEM-UK Consultation.
In addition to the Work Plan, the ASEAN-UK Economic Integration Programme (EIP) was launched on 24 April 2024 with a budget of GBP 25 million over a five-year period. The EIP provides support to ASEAN across three pillars:
- Regulatory Reform – Aims to improve regulatory and standards system in AMS making them less bureaucratic; provide a more stable environment for business investment; and better protect workers and consumers, particularly the most vulnerable in society.
- Financial Services – Aims to give wider access to financial services in AMS that enables greater financial resilience, particularly for MSMEs and women.
- Open Trade – Aims to increase trade between AMS and between ASEAN and the rest of the world, particularly for MSMEs and in digital trade.
The ASEAN-UK EIP Project Steering Committee (PSC) and Project Monitoring Team (PMT) – comprised of representatives from ASEAN Member States, the UK Mission to ASEAN, and the ASEAN Secretariat – oversee the implementation of the ASEAN-UK EIP.
