Capacity Building for ASEAN

Bonn/Jakarta. The ASEAN Secretariat and Inwent - Capacity Building International, Germany today inked an agreement to implement the second phase of the project “Strengthening Regional Cooperation – Institution and Capacity-Building of the ASEAN Secretariat”.

The agreement was signed by Mr. S. Pushpanathan, Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Economic Community, and Dr. Günther Taube, Director of International Regulatory Framework, Good Governance, Economic Policy of Inwent, at a ceremony held at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta.

The project aims to strengthen the ASEAN Secretariat in facilitating the implementation of the ASEAN Charter, which will move ASEAN towards a more rules-based organisation, and in promoting regional cooperation and integration in ASEAN.

Inwent was commissioned by the Federal Republic of Germany to implement the project jointly with the ASEAN Secretariat. Under the agreement, Germany will provide an amount of up to EUR 3.5 million over a two-year period (2009 – 2010) to fund capacity building activities in areas such as general administration and management, economic cooperation and integration, media and communication, and legal matters.

“We are grateful to the Federal Republic of Germany for their steadfast commitment to support the community building goals of ASEAN by strengthening the ASEAN Secretariat. It is through a strengthened ASEAN Secretariat that we can become the nerve centre of a strong and confident ASEAN Community. We look forward to working closely with Inwent to implement the various activities under the project,” said Mr S. Pushpanathan.

The ceremony was attended by Dr. Sebastian Paust, Chief Executive Director of Inwent, staff from the ASEAN Secretariat and media from the region.

The implementation agreement for the first phase of the project was signed by the ASEAN Secretariat and Inwent in 2008.

Inwent – Capacity Building International, Germany, is a non-profit organisation with worldwide operations dedicated to human resource development, advanced training, and dialogue. The capacity building programmes are directed at experts and executives from politics, administration, the business community, and civil society. Inwent is commissioned by the German Federal Government to assist with the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations. In addition, Inwent provides the German business sector with support for public private partnership projects. Through exchange programmes, Inwent also offers young people from Germany the opportunity to gain professional experience abroad.

ASEAN