ASEAN agrees to form villages network

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attends a dialogue between ASEAN leaders and High-Level Task Force on the ASEAN Community’s Post-2025 Vision. (Photo: VNA)

Jakarta (VNA) – Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have endorsed a joint statement on the establishment of an ASEAN Villages Network which aims to promote inclusive community participation and collaboration among villages.

It is expected to provide a platform for whole-of-community and inclusive participation so that the people’s voices are heard and they can contribute to and benefit from the development.

The network is also intended to exchange strategies to improve digital infrastructure, increase digital usage, enhance digital skills and inclusion, and promote digital innovation in rural areas. It is anticipated to facilitate better and wider rural products’ access to markets so as to provide more opportunities for village products to penetrate regional and international markets and strengthen the ASEAN identity among villages community.

The ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (AMMRDPE), with the support of the ASEAN Senior Officials’ Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (SOMRDPE) and other relevant ASEAN Sectoral Ministerial Bodies, has been tasked with mobilising resources for the implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, said the document./.