21 November 2013 - The Philippine Permanent Representative to ASEAN Elizabeth P. Buensuceso (fifth from left ), successfully co-chaired with Australian Ambassador to ASEAN Simon Merrifield the Third ASEAN-Australia Joint Cooperation Committee Meeting (AAJCC) which was held at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta.
Among the things discussed and approved during the meeting were a list of activities to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of ASEAN-Australia Dialogue Relations in 2014 as well as a draft Plan of Action to implement the various areas of ASEAN-Australia relations.
Ambassador Buensuceso also took the opportunity to thank ASEAN Member States and Australia for their valuable assistance to the victims of typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).
Australia became ASEAN’s first Dialogue Partner in 1974 and was ASEAN’s seventh largest trading partner in 2011. From 2002 to 2008, the ASEAN-Australian Development Cooperation Program (AADCP) provided a total of AUD 45 million for the goal of promoting sustainable economic and social development and integration within the ASEAN region. END