Minister Nguyen Van Thang speaks at the handover ceremony of the co-chair role of the OECD Southeast Asia Program between Australia, Vietnam, Canada and the Philippines. (Source: Nhan Dan)
On June 3, the opening ceremony of the Ministerial Council Meeting 2025 (MCM 2025) took place at the headquarters of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris.
The ceremony is not simply an annual event, but also marks a special milestone: the transfer of leadership of the Southeast Asia Program (SEARP) from Vietnam and Australia to Canada and the Philippines, reflecting Vietnam's maturity and increasingly important contribution on the international stage.
Taking place over 3-4 June under the chairmanship of Costa Rica while Australia, Canada and Lithuania assume the role of Vice Chair, the MCM 2025 conference has the theme "Paving the way for resilient, inclusive and sustainable prosperity through rules-based trade, investment and innovation."
The choice of this theme reflects the urgent challenges that the international community is facing in the context of a volatile global economy and the determination of countries to find common solutions and harmonious voices to overcome difficulties and build a sustainable future.
With trade, investment and innovation continuing to be pillars of prosperity, OECD member countries and their partners discussed priorities for international cooperation.
OECD members discussed solutions to open markets and a rules-based international trading system; make the digital economy a driver of growth towards shared prosperity; and build sustainable and inclusive economic growth through innovation policies.
This year's conference will also be an opportunity to discuss strengthening regional cooperation and knowledge sharing, particularly through synergies between regional programmes, with a focus on Latin America and the Caribbean.
One of the most prominent events of the conference was the handover ceremony of the OECD's Southeast Asia Programme (SEARP) Co-Chairship.
After three years of effective leadership (2022-2025), Australia and Vietnam officially handed over this role to Canada and the Philippines to the applause of Ministers from both the OECD and Southeast Asian countries.
Expressing his honor to represent the Vietnamese Government in speaking at the handover ceremony of the role of SEARP Co-Chair, Minister of Finance Nguyen Van Thang affirmed: "This is a strategic initiative, contributing to supporting economic reform, promoting sustainable growth and strengthening connectivity between OECD and ASEAN, a leading dynamic region in the world ."
As co-chair for the 2022-2025 term with Australia, Vietnam has led SEARP through a period of great change, from the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, to global supply chain challenges.
Vietnam and Australia have persistently promoted substantive cooperation, turning SEARP into a regional cooperation program with far-reaching influence.
Under the leadership of the two countries, SEARP has identified three core priorities: short-term recovery, medium-term reform, and closer integration with the OECD, and four priority areas: economic resilience, private sector reform, trade and investment openness, and green and digital transformation. These efforts have yielded remarkable results.
First of all, the signing of the first Memorandum of Understanding between OECD and ASEAN, creating a legal foundation and promoting cooperation through working group mechanisms, data sharing and technical assistance. This is considered a breakthrough in establishing a long-term cooperation framework between the two organizations.
The second is to successfully host the Southeast Asia Forum in Hanoi in 2022, opening up an annual ministerial dialogue mechanism between the OECD and the region on policy and development. This forum has become an important platform for sharing experiences, policies and spreading common values.
Third is the first implementation of Prospectus, a plan for practical cooperation in areas such as green and digital transformation, inclusive growth and productivity enhancement. These concrete projects will not only directly benefit Southeast Asian countries in the process of economic modernization, but also create models of cooperation that can be replicated globally.
Notably, during the last term, Vietnam successfully organized two Ministerial Forums of the Programme in Hanoi on supply chain resilience and high-quality investment, and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and action plan with the OECD focusing on competitiveness, investment, green transition and tax policy.
"Vietnam is proud to have worked with its partners to make SEARP a pillar of regional cooperation with a long-term, practical and substantive vision. Vietnam has demonstrated a proactive, responsible and creative leadership role, contributing to bringing OECD and ASEAN closer together, sharing common values and building a rules-based economic order," Minister Nguyen Van Thang expressed.
Welcoming the new term of Canada and the Philippines, Minister Nguyen Van Thang expressed his confidence that the new Co-Chairs will successfully assume the role of SEARP Co-Chairs and pledged that "Vietnam will continue to accompany, actively and constructively contribute, for a sustainable Southeast Asia, more closely connected with the international community."
Before concluding his speech, Minister Nguyen Van Thang expressed his deep gratitude to the OECD Secretary General and member countries, especially Japan, Australia, and South Korea, for supporting and promoting cooperation between the organization and Vietnam and Southeast Asian countries, and expressed his confidence in the future: "SEARP will continue to be the driving force connecting ASEAN and OECD for a green, digital, and humane future."
The OECD Southeast Asia Programme has been in place for over a decade, serving as an important platform in connecting OECD member countries with Southeast Asia, one of the main engines of global growth with a combined GDP of over US$3 trillion.
Since its implementation in 2014, Southeast Asian countries have doubled their compliance with OECD instruments and their participation in its bodies. To date, ASEAN member countries have made 67 legal commitments to OECD instruments.
In particular, the launch of negotiations on possible accession of Thailand and Indonesia to the OECD in 2024 has opened a new chapter in OECD-ASEAN relations. This process will not only benefit these two countries but also enhance the diversity of the OECD, bringing fresh national and regional perspectives to global policy discussions.
Speaking at the ceremony, OECD Secretary General Mathias Cormann gave positive assessments of the role of Southeast Asia with its dynamic economy, making this region a center of growth and global supply chains. Mr. Cormann emphasized the importance of SEARP in connecting OECD with ASEAN, the world's most dynamic region, and affirmed the role of the program in supporting countries to comply with international standards and share good solutions to promote investment, improve connectivity and tackle tax evasion.
ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn also emphasized the role of SEARP in promoting economic cooperation between the two organizations, becoming an effective bridge, not only in form but also in substance.
The handover ceremony of the SEARP Co-Chair logo was held solemnly, along with a souvenir photo ceremony with the participation of Ministers and senior leaders from Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands, Singapore, Thailand, the UK, the US and Vietnam..., demonstrating the spirit of solidarity and cooperation in the OECD community./.
(Vietnam News Agency/Vietnam+)
Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/viet-nam-va-australia-chuyen-giao-vai-tro-lanh-dao-chuong-trinh-dong-nam-a-post1042279.vnp
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