(VOVworld) - A workshop was held in Hanoi on Tuesday to introduce ASEAN’s cooperation funds and programmes between ASEAN and its partners. The ASEAN Community was established on December 31, 2015 and has entered a period of consolidating its connectivity via implementing the ASEAN Vision towards 2025 and the blueprints for each pillar and sector of the Community. There are over 70 cooperation funds and programmes within the framework of ASEAN and between the organization and its partners. These institutions have helped boost connectivity, particularly in narrowing development gaps and addressing the common challenges.

At the workshop, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Quoc Dung said as an active member of ASEAN, Vietnam has proposed and implemented cooperative projects within ASEAN and beyond:          “From 2010 to 2014, Vietnam was one of the 4 countries that had the least proposals among the 10 ASEAN member countries, while Vietnam is part of the Mekong Sub-region together with Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar, who were given top priorities in the ASEAN Connectivity initiative. The effectiveness of cooperation funds and programs depends on how proactive member countries are in their proposals for financial grants. I hope that ministries, sectors, and localities will pay more attention and better utilize these funds. This also shows Vietnam’s active and important participation in ASEAN cooperation.”