Phnom Penh (FN), Oct. 13 – Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen and also the rotating chair of ASEAN in 2022 said that to recover our regional socio-economic development with resiliency and sustainability, ASEAN needs to strengthen cooperation and pay more attention to the protection and development of human capital.

The premier spoke at the opening of the 28th ASEAN Socio-cultural community council meeting, held on Thursday (Oct 13) in Phnom Penh.

“To recover our regional socio-economic development with resiliency and sustainability, ASEAN needs to strengthen cooperation and pay more attention to the protection and development of human capital through: (1). Digitalization by giving priority to promoting wider adoption of digital technology; (2). Development of public health and social protection system to be ready to respond to crises; and (3). Strengthening education sector and skills development,” the premier underscored.

The premier continued, “besides, the experiences from COVID19 have clearly showed the necessity to strengthen the regional social safety net, which will make a significant contribution to promoting equitable and inclusive regional socioeconomic development. In this regard, I hope that all ASEAN members will adopt the "ASEAN Declaration on Portability of Social Security Benefits for Migrant Workers in ASEAN".

Moreover, continuing to provide more care on job security and safety as well as income stability for women who are engaging in economic activities are also important task. Therefore, we must further support and promote the implementation of the initiatives set out in the "ASEAN Declaration on Building more Sustainable, Inclusive and Resilient Future: Unlocking Women’s Entrepreneurship in ASEAN".

Recognizing the importance of advancing education system reform, skills training, and recovery of learning loss in the past, Cambodia has initiated the preparation of the guidelines for "Reopen, Recover and Resilience in Education: Guidelines for ASEAN Countries" to ensure that all children and adults receive quality and safe education.

Meanwhile COVID19 has already one-step ahead transformed traditional education into a digital form of education. In the context of the rapid evolution of digital technology, ASEAN should make greater efforts in promoting the digital transformation of the education system. In this regard, Samdech is optimistic that ASEAN leaders will join me to adopt the "Declaration on Digital Transformation of Education System throughout ASEAN" in the upcoming 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits this November.
=FRESH NEWS