A view of cake cutting ceremony to mark the 55th anniversary of Asean, which was attended by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Chief of Protocol H E Ambassador Ibrahim Yousif Abdullah Fakhro, Asean Committee in Doha Chairman and Malaysian Ambassador to Qatar, H E Zamshari Shaharan, along with other Asean member states ambassadors. Pic: Joelyn Baluyut / The Peninsula
The Asean Committee in Doha (ACD) celebrated yesterday the 55th Asean anniversary carrying the theme, “Stronger Together.”
ACD Chairman and Malaysian Ambassador to Qatar, H E Zamshari Shaharan said the commemoration is a double celebration — anniversary of Asean and Qatar’s successful accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia held recently in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
“The signing of the treaty marked an important milestone for Asean-Qatar relations and reflects Qatar’s commitment to Asean in the coming years. The recent visit by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani to Asean is seen as a positive development in this aspect too,” the envoy explained.
To mark the 55th Asean Day, a cake cutting ceremony was held led by Ambassador Shaharan; Ministry of Foreign Affairs Chief of Protocol; H E Ambassador Ibrahim Yousif Abdullah Fakhro; Director of the Asian Department, H E Yusof bin Sultan Yousef Laram; Director of International Organisation Department, H E Ali bin Khalfan Al Mansouri; Assistant Director of International Organisation Department, Dr. Hanouf Abdulrahman Al Thani along with the Ambassadors of the Asean member states.
Ambassador Shaharan said the committee is looking forward to a more substantive and meaningful engagement with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and with the Government of Qatar to explore practical cooperation under three pillars: political security, economic, and socio-cultural.
The Chairman underlined the robust trade between Asean and Qatar which averages around $10bn annually, with Singapore and Thailand among Qatar’s top trading partners. “There is prospective economic cooperation to be explored between Asean and Qatar, especially pertaining to enhancing the supply chains that were disrupted due to the COVID-19.”
Among the potential areas to be developed, according to the envoy include trade and investment between Asean and Qatar such as digital infrastructure, industrial automation, robotics, energy, Islamic finance, tourism, digital manufacturing, and halal industry.
By 2030, the Asean is poised to become the fourth largest economy in the world. With 670 million people, it has the third largest population, with a combined gross domestic product of over $3 trillion.
This year’s anniversary theme “Stronger Together” is in line with Cambodia’s Asean Chairmanship 2022 theme of “Addressing Challenges Together.”
The theme calls for forward-minded people of Asean to come in unison and lend their collective strength to face challenging times. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations comprises 10 members states: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
