08 Apr 2019
JAKARTA, 8 April 2019 - ASEAN and Australia held the 13th Joint Planning and Review Committee (JPRC) Meeting of the Second Phase of the ASEAN-Australia Development Cooperation Program (AADCP II) at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta on 5 April.
The meeting was co-chaired by Ambassador Dato’ Shariffah Norhana Syed Mustaffa, Permanent Representative of Malaysia to ASEAN and Australian Ambassador to ASEAN Jane Duke. The meeting reviewed the implementation of the AADCP II and discussed its way forward. It also highlighted AADCP II’s valued contributions to ASEAN regional economic integration, ASEAN connectivity, narrowing the development gap and capacity building of the ASEAN Secretariat. The meeting noted with appreciation the agreement between ASEAN and Australia to extend the programme until 31 December 2021 in order to complete the implementation of several of the on-going and new projects and to prepare the design of the new program.
Ambassador Duke informed that AADCP II remains a strong component of the ASEAN-Australia Strategic Partnership. Ambassador Shariffah, in return, on behalf of the ASEAN Member States, expressed appreciation for the long standing support Australia provided in supporting the ASEAN Vision 2025: Forging Ahead Together, particularly the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint, Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity 2025 and Initiative for ASEAN Integration Work Plan III in areas such as consumer protection, financial integration, agriculture, investment, tourism, energy and minerals. Malaysia currently serves as the ASEAN Country Coordinator for ASEAN-Australia Dialogue Relations.
The Programme Management Team reported that 62 projects have been completed under the Rolling Prioritization Plan (RPP). Further, the team reported that between July 2018 and June 2019, 19 projects are on-going, seven projects have been approved and four new projects are in the pipeline. The 13th JPRC meeting approved the RPP 2018-2019.
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