AKARTA, 19 APRIL 2021 – ASEAN and Italy convened the inaugural ASEAN-Italy Development Partnership Committee (AI-DPC). The meeting took place online, marking the launch of ASEAN-Italy formal partnership. Where both sides identified a number of mutually beneficial projects and programmes of cooperation.
At the meeting, Italy announced its intention to contribute EUR 2.5 million to the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund to support ASEAN’s response to the pandemic. Officials from both sides discussed the recent developments in ASEAN and Italy, including efforts to address the pandemic, as well as initiatives towards recovery, through the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework.
ASEAN and Italy also deliberated on ways to deepen their cooperation in key areas such as:
Cyber security; transnational crime; law enforcement cooperation; cultural heritage; digital and smart cities; green infrastructure; public health; tourism recovery; space cooperation; and gender equality and women empowerment.
Other potential areas of cooperation include air services connectivity; micro small and medium enterprises; biodiversity; technical and vocational education and training (TVET); youth; disaster management; and bio-circular-green economy.
The meeting agreed to develop a five-year Practical Cooperation Areas as an action plan to roll out mutually beneficial projects, programmes and initiatives to substantiate the partnership between ASEAN and Italy.
The ASEAN Foreign Ministers conferred the status of Development Partner on Italy at the 53rd ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting on 9 September 2020. With this formalisation, the AI-DPC, which comprises the Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN, the ASEAN Secretariat and the Embassy of Italy in Jakarta, will provide the direction and oversee all aspects of the Development Partnership.
Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Economic Community Satvinder Singh co-chaired the meeting with Ambassador of the Italian Republic to ASEAN Benedetto Latteri. Members of the Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN and Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy, Manlio Di Stefano, also participated in the meeting.