ONLINE, 4 January 2022 – The ASEAN Secretariat, through Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for the Socio Cultural Community Ekkaphab Phanthavong, took part as a member of the “We Are Together” International Prize organising committee.
The Prize is spearheaded by the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs of the Russian Federation in collaboration with, among others, the UN Volunteers and the International Association of Volunteer Efforts.
Established in 2020, it aims to honor the contribution of global citizens in the fight against COVID-19 in four sub-nominations: (i) Medicine, (ii) Business, (iii) Education and Technology, and (iv) Personal Contribution of a Citizen.
Other members of the Organizing Committee include Ambassador Leon Faber, the Deputy Executive Director of the Asia-Europe Foundation and Deputy Executive Director Chi Fang of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia Secretariat.
The organising committee met on November 8to discuss, deliberate and approve the final list of laureates and made proposals on the subject of the Prize for 2022. There were over 400 applicants from 59 countries consisting of individuals and representatives of international organisations.
The awarding ceremony took place in Moscow and was broadcasted online on December 5on the sidelines of the #WeAreTogether International Forum of Civil Participation. The event was participated by the President of Russia Vladimir Putin, and around 5000 people from 37 countries. Initiated in 2015,the Forum takes place annually on International Volunteers Day and is considered a major event in the sphere of volunteering and humanitarian action.
A representative from Thailand, who submitted an entry under the Education and Technology sub-category, was one of the 12 selected laureates for this year’s international prize.
The “We Are Together” International Prize initiative is aligned with the outcome of the 5th ASEAN-Russia Youth Summit which identified volunteering and entrepreneurship as common areas of interest between ASEAN and Russia.
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