Philippine Ambassador to ASEAN Elizabeth P. Buensuceso (2nd from left) encouraged participants at the ASEAN-China Center (ACC) brainstorming session held on 5 May 2015 at the ACC Secretariat in Beijing, to use the Center as a venue to promote ASEAN-China relations under the principles of inclusivity, transparency and strict adherence to ASEAN Centrality.
The brainstorming session, which was attended by the ACC’s Joint Council and Joint Executive Board members, conducted a mid-term review of ACC’s work since its establishment in 2011. The ACC promotes ASEAN-China cooperation through its work on trade, investment, education, culture and tourism promotion.
In one of her interventions, Ambassador Buensuceso, Philippine representative to the ACC Joint Council, encouraged the ACC to be inclusive by conducting joint promotion programs and activities in its various priority areas, rather than focusing on individual ASEAN Member States.
Ambassador Buensuceso also recommended that regular meetings be convened among the commercial counsellors of the ASEAN Embassies in Beijing and the trade and investment representatives from the China Council to explore and discuss opportunities and initiatives to further promote and facilitate ASEAN-China trade and investments.
As part of its initiative to raise the profile of ASEAN and its member countries in China, the ACC has initiated a program called “Touring ASEAN with Diplomats” microblog interview series. On 13 April 2015, Philippine Ambassador to China Erlinda F. Basilio was featured and her interview via the ACC microblog on Philippines-China relations and ASEAN-related matters garnered more than 300,000 hits, the most so far in the program.
The brainstorming session agreed to amend the memorandum of understanding between ASEAN Member States and China on the establishment of the ACC to align it with realities on the ground and to further strengthen the capacity of the ACC to effectively and efficiently fulfill its mandate in promoting ASEAN-China dialogue relations. The MOU, which came into force in November 2011 for five years, will expire in November 2016.
The brainstorming session also endorsed the appointment of China’s Ambassador to ASEAN Yang Xiuping as the next ACC Secretary-General for a three-year term. END
