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.
