The conference took place under the chairmanship of the Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism of Laos. This year's theme is "ASEAN: Promoting Connectivity and Resilience." In particular, 2024 is considered an important time in the process of building the Community, with ASEAN basically completing the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 to transition to the ASEAN Community Vision 2045.

The 31st ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Conference. (Photo: VNA)

The priorities of the Culture and Society pillar in 2024 will be discussed at the conference are (i) Culture and Arts: Promoting the role of ASEAN Culture and Arts for inclusion and sustainability; (ii) Promoting environmental cooperation: Adapting to climate change; (iii) Women and Children: Promoting the role of women and children to transform action in the ASEAN region, and (iv) Health: Resilience for ASEAN health development in the new context.

The discussion also highlights the importance of further strengthening ASEAN identity, especially holding dialogue on common civilizational values ​​as well as among diverse cultures and religions in the region.

Speaking at the conference, the Head of the Vietnamese delegation Luu Quang Tuan, Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs of Vietnam, highly appreciated the priorities of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community led by Laos. He believes that the results of the conference, under the leadership of the Chairmanship of Laos, will make an important contribution to regional cooperation. They will also affirm the prestige, position and role of ASEAN regionally and internationally.

Luu Quang Tuan, Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, Head of the Vietnamese delegation attending the Conference. (Photo: VNA).

Vietnam agrees with the orientations focusing on sustainable development, strengthening cultural and artistic cooperation and promoting the role of women and children. Luu Quang Tuan affirmed that Vietnam is ready to coordinate and support in implementing initiatives and priorities in addition to supporting the role of Chairman of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community in 2024. The initiatives and priorities in the field of Specialties of support include: the process of completing the ASEAN Declaration on the prevention and elimination of child labor; Declaration on mobility, mutual recognition and vocational skills development for migrant workers to present to ASEAN senior leaders; guidelines, regional assessment reports as well as the organization of a number of important activities and events, including the 8th ASEAN Children's Forum, the ASEAN High-Level Interdisciplinary Dialogue on Social Security and Women's Summit on Care Economics.

Throughout the conference, Ministers and Heads of delegations from other ASEAN member countries also shared their views, a number of national-level initiatives and activities in response to this year's theme.

At the end of the conference, the Ministers and Heads of Delegation issued a Joint Statement and agreed in principle to approve the List of Documents and Declarations of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community. The document is expected to be presented to the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits later this year.

The Ministers and Heads of delegations also agreed on the content of the Report of the 31st ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Conference to present to ASEAN senior leaders.

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