Joint Statement of the 11th ASEAN Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting (AFMGM)
Published on 05/04/2024
Luang Prabang, Lao PDR
1. The 11th ASEAN Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting (AFMGM) was convened under the co-chairmanship of H.E. Mr. Santiphab Phomvihane, Finance Minister and H.E. Mr. Bounleua Sinxayvoravong, Governor of the Bank of the Lao PDR.
ASEAN Chair 2024 Priorities
2. The Meeting welcomed Lao PDR’s theme of “ASEAN: Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience”. The theme embodies Lao PDR’s vision to strengthen the ASEAN Community, enhance ASEAN cooperation on connectivity and resilience, promote infrastructure connectivity and strengthen ASEAN’s relations with external partners while maintaining ASEAN’s centrality in the evolving regional architecture. Lao PDR’s priorities are anchored on three strategic thrusts of (i) Integrating and Connecting Economies, (ii) Forging an Inclusive and Sustainable Future, and (iii) Transforming for Digital Future.
3. The Meeting welcomed the successful completion of Lao PDR’s Priority Economic Deliverable (PED) on “Enhancing Policy Dialogue to Address Financing Gaps and Strengthen Financial Inclusion among MSMEs”, which gathered the Working Committee on Financial Inclusion (WC-FINC) together with external partners and key stakeholders, including the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP) and the ASEAN Coordinating Committee on Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (ACCMSME) to discuss ways and initiatives to narrow financing gaps for MSMEs such as through harnessing digital infrastructure, improving financial literacy, providing incentives to financial service providers, and strengthening credit bureaus. The Meeting noted the progress of the PED on the technical study of the New Generation of ASEAN Single Window (ASW) with the intention of setting a new vision for ASW to be more open, inclusive, and interoperable to ease connectivity and the exchange of electronic trade-related documents. The study would also complement the Bandar Seri Begawan Roadmap’s key objective for ASEAN to accelerate initiatives in the areas of trade facilitation and digitalisation and be in line with the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) objective, which aims to create a seamless digital trade ecosystem across the region.
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