New Asean Secretary General Highlights Need for 'Proactive and Efficient' Asean Secretariat
Jakarta. The new secretary general for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Lim Jock Hoi, said on Friday (05/01) that the regional bloc must be more proactive and efficient in addressing urgent issues, including natural disasters facing the region and non-traditional challenges across the globe.
"The constantly evolving global and regional landscape means that the challenges and opportunities facing Asean today are different compared to its early days," Lim said during the handover ceremony at the Asean Secretariat in South Jakarta.
Lim, who previously served as permanent secretary of Brunei Darussalam’s ministry of foreign affairs and trade, is replacing Le Luong Minh of Vietnam, who wrapped up his five year-term in December.
During his term, Minh saw the establishment of the 2015 Asean Community, which highlighted the organization’s three fundamental pillars: political-security community, economic community and socio-cultural community.
In his speech, Lim also touched on the importance of Asean unity "to make sure its work takes into account the realities of the world we live in today" and that the region advances toward inclusive growth and sustainable development.
"Our region is a disaster-prone area, and this underscores the need to strengthen Asean cooperation in disaster management and humanitarian assistance," Lim said.
In December, Typhoon Tembin hit the southern Philippines and caused the deaths of more than 250 people. It also affected areas in Malaysia and Vietnam.
Lim highlighted the importance for the Asean Secretariat to enhance its research capacity and organization of support for member states, as well as to strengthen cooperation with the bloc’s dialogue partners and other key institutions.
"There’s a greater scope for the Asean Secretariat to be more proactive and savvy in order to serve all member states and improve our capability," Lim said.
In his remarks, Minh also touched on the need for the secretariat's staff "to be more analytical in their reporting and sharpen their policy analysis."
"The secretariat can be more proactive and innovative in helping Asean think through and formulate new ideas," Minh said.
He added that people-centered values must also continue to be adopted to strengthen the secretariat.
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