The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was founded on August 8, 1967, in Bangkok, Thailand.
• The ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration) was signed by the Founding Fathers of ASEAN from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
• Brunei Darussalam joined ASEAN on January 7, 1984.
• Viet Nam joined ASEAN on July 28, 1995.
• Lao PDR and Myanmar joined ASEAN on July 23, 1997.
• Cambodia became the tenth member state of ASEAN on April 30, 1999.

Aims and Purposes of ASEAN

• To accelerate economic growth, social progress, and cultural development in the region through joint efforts based on equality and partnership.
• To promote regional peace and stability by respecting justice, the rule of law, and the principles of the United Nations Charter.
• To foster active collaboration and mutual assistance in economic, social, cultural, technical, scientific, and administrative matters.
• To provide assistance in education, professional fields, and administration through training and research facilities.
• To improve the utilization of agriculture and industries, expand trade and study international commodity trade problems.
• To improve transportation and communication facilities, raise living standards, promote Southeast Asian studies, and maintain close cooperation with international and regional organizations.

Fundamental Principles of ASEAN

• Mutual respect for independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity, and national identity.
• The right of every State to lead its national existence without external interference, subversion, or coercion.
• Non-interference in internal affairs.
• Peaceful settlement of differences or disputes.
• Renunciation of the threat or use of force.
• Effective cooperation among themselves.

ASEAN Member States

• Brunei Darussalam: Head of State is His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah, capital is Bandar Seri Begawan, language is Malay/English, currency is Brunei Dollar.
• Cambodia: Head of State is His Majesty King Norodom Sihamoni, Head of Government is Prime Minister Hun Sen, capital is Phnom Penh, language is Khmer, currency is Riel.
• Indonesia: Head of State is President Joko Widodo, capital is Jakarta, language is Indonesian, currency is Rupiah.
• Lao PDR/Laos: Head of State is President Thongloun Sisoulith, Head of Government is Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, capital is Vientiane, language is Lao, currency is Kip.
• Malaysia: Head of State is His Majesty Seri Paduka Baginda The Yang Di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah Ibni Almarhum Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Al-Musta'in Billah, Head of Government is Prime Minister Dato' Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim, capital is Kuala Lumpur, language is Malay/English/Chinese/Tamil, currency is Ringgit.
• Myanmar: Head of State is U Win Myint, capital is Nay Pyi Taw, language is Myanmar, currency is Kyat.
• Philippines: Head of State is President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr., capital is Manila, language is Filipino/English/Spanish, currency is Peso.
• Singapore: Head of State is President Halimah Yacob, Head of Government is Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, capital is Singapore, language is English/Malay/Mandarin/Tamil, currency is Singapore Dollar.
• Thailand: Head of State is His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun, Head of Government is Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha, capital is Bangkok, language is Thai, currency is Baht.
• Vietnam: Head of State is President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Head of Government is Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, capital is Ha Noi, language is Vietnamese, currency is Dong.

ASEAN History

• On August 8, 1967, the Foreign Ministers of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand signed a document in Bangkok.
• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was formed by that document.
• The 5 founding foreign ministers signed the document.
• Adam Malik (Indonesia), Narciso R. Ramos (Philippines), Tun Abdul Razak (Malaysia), S. Rajaratnam (Singapore), and Thanat Khoman (Thailand) were the 5 foreign ministers

ASEAN Identity and Symbols

• ASEAN Identity: Defined during the 37th ASEAN Summit (Nov 12, 2020) as a process of social construct combining "Constructed Values" and "Inherited Values" to strengthen the ASEAN Community.
• ASEAN Motto: "One Vision, One Identity, One Community."
• ASEAN Flag represents a stable, peaceful, united, and dynamic ASEAN with the colors blue, red, white, and yellow reflecting the main colors of the flags of ASEAN Member States.
• Blue represents peace and stability, Red depicts courage and dynamism, white shows purity, and yellow symbolizes prosperity.
• ASEAN Day: August 8th.
• In 2022 after two years of on-line celebration, the ASEAN secretariat held a physical celebration at it's headquarters in Jakarta.
• Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi of Indonesia graced the event along with the Secretary-General of ASEAN Dato Lim Jock Hoi and the diplomatic community in the Indonesian capital.

ASEAN Charter

• Into force December 15, 2008 during ASEAN Foreign Minister gathering in Jakarta.
• It represents:
• New political commitment at the top level
• New and enhanced commitments
• New legal framework, legal personality
• New ASEAN bodies
• Two new openly-recruited DSGs
• More ASEAN meetings
• More roles of ASEAN Foreign Ministers
• A new enhanced role of the Secretary-General of ASEAN
• Other new initiatives and changes

ASEAN Structure

• The ASEAN Community comprises three pillars: the ASEAN Political-Security Community, the ASEAN Economic Community, and the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community.

ASEAN Political Security Community

• The APSC aims to ensure that countries in the region live in peace and harmony with one another, based on democratic values and harmonious environment.
• Members of the Community pledge to resolve intra-regional differences through peaceful processes.
• It has the following components: political development; shaping and sharing of norms; conflict prevention; conflict resolution; post-conflict peace building; and implementing mechanisms.

APSC-related Agreements

• The following instruments in the ASEAN Political-Security Community Pillar are:

Declaration (ZOPFAN)

• ZOPFAN promotes peace and cooperation not only in Southeast Asia but also in the wider Asia Pacific region.

Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC)

• The TAC aims to create political and security stability in Southeast Asia and utilizes peaceful conflict resolution mechanisms.
• Signed in 1979 by the 5 founding Heads of State of ASEAN, it was amended in 1987 to allow accession by countries in other regions.

Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon Free Zone (SEANWFZ)

• The SEANWFZ aims to create a nuclear-free Southeast Asia Region, contributing to nuclear disarmament and promoting peace and security.
• The treaty protect the region from pollution and hazards caused by radioactive waste.

ASEAN Economic Community

• The AEC aims for economic integration.
• Envisions ASEAN as a single market, a competitive region, with equitable economic development integrated to the global economy.

AEC-Related Agreements

• ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA), ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS), and the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA) facilitates the ASEAN agreemts.
• Includes the ASEAN Agreement on Movement of Natural Persons (AAMNP) and Mutual Recognition Arrangements on Services (MRAs).

ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community

• The ASCC works towards:
• A committed and socially-responsible community for the benefit of ASEAN peoples
• An inclusive community that equitably promotes high quality of all and protects human rights
• A sustainable community in social development and environmental protection
• A resilient community with enhanced capacity to adapt to social disasters, climate change, and other new challenges;
• A dynamic and harmonious community that embraces identity, culture, and heritage.

ASCC Vision, Objectives and Strategic Measures

• Addressed by 15 ASEAN Sectoral Bodies responsible for:
• Health
• Education
• Youth
• Sports
• Culture
• Information
• Social Welfare
• Women
• Rural Development
• Rights of Women and Children
• Environment
• Transboundary Haze
• Disaster Management
• Labour
• Civil Service

ASEAN MRA-TP

• Increases the international mobility of tourism labor across the ASEAN region through standardization.
• Designed to address the imbalance between tourism job supply and demand, it creates mobility of skilled and certified tourism labor across the ASEAN region.

MRA-TP Benefits

• Facilitates mobility of tourism professionals
• Enhances competency-based training/education
• Improves the quality of tourism human resources
• Enhances the quality of tourism services

MRA-TP For Education and Training

• Creates standards for developing training programs
• Creates competency-based training and assessment system
• Defines job-based tourism qualifications based on common labor divisions
• Offers potential programs to become ASEAN Common Competency Standards for Tourism Professionals (ACCSTP) qualifications.

MRA-TP Key Components

• ASEAN Tourism Professional Monitoring Committee (ATPMC)
• ASEAN Tourism Professionals Registration System (ATPRS) www.atprs.org.
• National Tourism Professional Board (NTPB)
• Tourism Professionals Certification Board (TPCB)
• Tourism Professionals
• ASEAN Common Competency Standards for Tourism Professionals (ACCSTP)
• Common ASEAN Tourism Curriculum (CATC)
• Regional Secretariat
• ACCSTP, minimum requirements of competency standards
• Common Labour Division
• The minimal competencies required are arranged on a framework using common divisions of labour.
• CATC based on the CBT provides trainees with skills, knowledge and attitudes necessary against Industry Competency Standards.

The CATC

• The CATC consists of five (5) qualification levels across all six (6) labor divisions and reflects the stated needs of AMS and the needs of industry.
• The MRA Infrastructure is governed at the regional level by the ASEAN Tourism Professional Monitoring Committee (ATPMC) and the ASEAN Tourism Professional Registration System (ATPRS).

The key stakeholders in the Philippines collaborating

• The Department of Tourism (DOT) -lead as the National Tourism Organization (NTO)
• The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) as TPCB
• The Tourism Industry Board Foundation, Inc. (TIBFI) as the NTPB.

The Department of Tourism (DOT) agency's responsibilities

• Develop, coordinate, and implement work programmes to enhance cooperation in tourism.
• Provide a mechanism to promote participation from the business sector and non-government organizations.
• Establish working groups to assist in the development and implementation of policies and work programmes. ASEAN
• Represent the Philippines in the ASEAN Tourism Professional Monitoring Committee (ATPMC).

Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) responsibilities

• TPCB in the Philippines that focuses on assessment and certification of tourism professionals.

TIBFI Role and Responsibilities

• Includes the private and public sector including the academia
• Create awareness and disseminate information about the ASEAN MRA;
• Promote, update, maintain and monitor the ACCSTP and the CATC;
• Facilitate the exchange of information on assessment procedure
• Report its work progress to the ASEAN NTO;
• Formulate and update necessary mechanism to enable implementing MRA
• Facilitate the exchange of best practices in the tourism sector.