ASEAN, US sign Regional Development Cooperation Agreement
ASEAN Secretary-General Dato Lim Jock Hoi and US Agency for International Development (USAID) Principal Officer to ASEAN Ryan Washburn have recently signed a Regional Development Cooperation Agreement (RDCA) between ASEAN and the US.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks at the ASEAN-US Ministerial Meeting on September 10. (Photo: VNA)
Jakarta (VNA) - ASEANSecretary-General Dato Lim Jock Hoi and US Agency for International Development(USAID) Principal Officer to ASEAN Ryan Washburn have recently signed aRegional Development Cooperation Agreement (RDCA) between ASEAN and the US.
The RDCA will contributeto strengthening ties and continuing links of friendship between ASEAN and the US,advancing sustainable and inclusive growth and development. It will encouragerule-based systems in support of a peaceful, secure and prosperous ASEAN, inline with the ASEAN Community Vision 2025, the ASEAN-US Plan of Action(2021-2025) and the Joint Statement of the ASEAN-US Special Summit.
Speaking at the signingceremony, Lim said the US shall continue to be one of ASEAN’s key dialoguepartners in the ASEAN Community building efforts. ASEAN looks forward tothe implementation of projects and programmes to be supported by the RDCA inresponse to current and emerging challenges.
He thanked the USGovernment, through the USAID and the US Mission to ASEAN, for its support tothe on-going initiatives and the future programmes under the RDCA.
For his part, Washburnsaid this new five-year agreement between USAID and ASEAN, with a value of upto 50 million USD, underscores the US commitment to regional development, ASEAN’scentrality, and the shared goals of regional integration and rules-basedgovernance to promote peace, security and prosperity in ASEAN.
The RDCA will serve asan umbrella framework for all the on-going and future ASEAN-US cooperationprogrammes to address regional and global challenges such as the COVID-19pandemic, human trafficking and forced labour, access to the digital economy,and coordinated responses to natural disasters.
The signing ceremonytook place at the ASEAN Secretariat during the side lines of the ASEAN-USMinisterial Meeting on September 10, marking another milestone of the ASEAN-USstrategic partnership and development cooperation./.
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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks at the ASEAN-US Ministerial Meeting on September 10. (Photo: VNA)
