Ambassador Vu Ho, acting head of SOM Vietnam. (Photo: baoquocte.vn)Ambassador Vu Ho, acting head of SOM Vietnam, made the call when addressing the8th meeting of the 8th meeting of the ASEAN Coordinating Council Working Group on Public Health Emergencies (ACCWG-PHE) and the ASEAN Joint Consultative Meeting (JCM) which were held online on April 20 under the chairof Cambodia, the chair country of ASEAN in 2022.
Theambassador shared the lesson learnt from the pandemic regarding gettingprepared for all situations, and underlined the need to enhance public awarenessabout disease prevention and control through diverse communication formssuitable for each group of target audience.
He also urged ASEAN health officials to actively hold discussions and consultationstowards the early establishment and launch of the ASEAN Centre for Public Health Emergencies and Emerging Diseases (ACPHEED), so as to help ASEANenhance its capacity in preventing, controlling and responding to healthemergencies.
Regarding the process of ASEAN Community building, the ambassadorreiterated Vietnam’s support for Chair Cambodia’s initiatives and appreciatedthe work of the High-Level Task Force (HLTF) on ASEAN Community's Post-2025 Vision. He asked thetask force to coordinate closely with all three Community pillars and followthe set roadmap to ensure the pace and effectiveness of its work.
The Vietnamese representative also expressed a hope that following the first ASEANhigh-level forum on sub-regional cooperation for sustainable development and inclusive growthhosted by Vietnam last October, the second such forum will be held this year toprovide a venue for further in-depth and extensive discussion on the matter,thus contributing to the ASEAN Community building process.
The ACCWG-PHE acknowledged the positive developments inpandemic control and the re-opening policies of most ASEAN member countries. Itagreed that the recovery process continued to be maintained led by agriculture,construction, production and information technology.
The meeting welcomed the initiative on building an ASEAN portalfor vaccination certification to standardize the certification process andfacilitate movement in the region
Participants praised commitments on contribution to the ASEAN COVID-19 Response Fund which amounted to 30 million USD so far, part of which had beendisbursed to buy vaccines for member countries. Many opinions suggestedcontinuing to use the fund to purchase vaccines, medical supplies and testkits, conduct research, and raise public awareness about epidemic prevention.
The ASEAN Regional Reserve ofMedical Supplies (RRMS) has received commitment on contributionsfrom Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore, and continued to call for donations fromcountries and partners.
The meeting urged ASEAN health officials to continue with discussion towardearly reaching agreement on the establishment and operation of the ACPHEED.
Meanwhile, the JCM focused on progress in the ASEAN Community building,coordination among sectors and pillars and cooperation between the bloc andpartners.
Participants agreed to intensify inter-sectoral and inter-pillar cooperationand proposed issues that need attention in the time ahead such as circulareconomy, carbon neutrality, blue economy, maritime security, cyber and environmentalcrime, and corporate social responsibility./.
VNA
