Vientiane, 27 February 2024 – The Senior Officials Committee for the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (SOCA) convened the “SOCA Retreat Meeting and First Meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Development of the ASCC Post-2025 Strategic Plan” via video conference.
The meeting discussed the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community’s (ASCC) priorities and deliverables under Lao PDR’s ASEAN Chairmanship theme “ASEAN: Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience”. It also discussed the development of the ASCC Post-2025 Strategic Plan.
In his opening remarks, SOCA Chair Khamphou Phiasackha (Deputy Director-General of Planning and International Cooperation Department, Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lao PDR) emphasised the need to intensify ASEAN cooperation on connectivity and resilience across the three ASEAN community pillars. He further stressed the importance of promoting infrastructure connectivity, narrowing the development gap, promoting greater economic integration and people-to-people exchanges, as well as strengthening ASEAN’s relations with external partners, while ensuring ASEAN’s relevance and ASEAN centrality in the evolving regional architecture.
Promoting the role of ASEAN Culture and the Arts featured prominently in Lao PDR’s ASCC priorities and deliverables. The Vang Vieng Declaration on Promoting the Small and Medium-sized Cultural Enterprises will focus on strengthening human capacity building and increasing more activities of culture and the arts in developing small and medium-sized cultural enterprises. The declaration underscores the significant role of ASEAN culture and the arts in promoting inclusion and sustainability.
A number of important ASEAN documents from the ASCC are also expected to be submitted for adoption and notation by the ASEAN Leaders at the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits in October 2024 in Vientiane, Lao PDR. These documents include: the ASEAN Joint Statement on Climate Change to UNFCCC COP 29; Declaration on Strengthening Care Economy and Resilience Toward ASEAN Community Post-2025; ASEAN Leaders’ Declaration on Biosafety and Biosecurity; and development of a plan of action to operationalise the ASEAN Leaders’ Declaration on Ending Inequalities and Getting on Track to End AIDS by 2030.
Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for the ASCC Ekkaphab Phanthavong, applauded the strong portfolio of deliverables from Lao PDR’s ASEAN Chairmanship of the ASCC in enhancing climate change resilience, empowering women and children, and transforming health development in the face of emerging challenges in the region. He also commended the establishment of an Ad-Hoc Working Group which will start working on the development of the ASCC Post-2025 Strategic Plan, which is planned to be endorsed by the Leaders at the ASEAN Summit in 2025.
The meeting exchanged views on the development of the ASCC Post-2025 Strategic Plan including its drafting methodology, timelines and key stakeholder engagement initiatives. The development of the strategic plan to implement the ASEAN Community Vision 2045 will ensure a prosperous and sustainable future for the region, and it is expected to build on the achievements and milestones of the current ASCC Blueprint 2025 which is in its final stages of implementation.
The meeting welcomed Timor-Leste as an Observer to the meeting and reiterated ASEAN’s continued support for Timor-Leste’s preparations to join ASEAN.
