Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaking at the forum (Photo: Tran Hai)

The forum, the first of its kind, provided ASEAN member states and their partners, regional and international organisations, and business community with a chance to discuss opportunities, challenges, potentials and orientations to promote sub-regional development cooperation.

Speaking at the event, PM Chinh stressed that due to ASEAN’s diversity, the development of sub-regions, which are all in important geographical locations, needs the bloc’s attention.

Together with stepping up regional connectivity, it is important to connect areas and zones and ensure that they catch up with the common development of the region, he said.

He also called for strengthened solidarity and close cooperation among regional countries, which he said is a prerequisite to ensure inclusive and sustainable growth.

The Vietnamese leader pointed out three priorities that need to be promoted in sub-regional cooperation, including making the people the centre, goal and driver of development, enhancing regional and global coordination to improve capacity for sustainable sub-regional development, and strengthening infrastructure, economic and cultural connectivity to narrow development gap, thus facilitating sub-regional economic development.

Participants at the event suggested accelerating connectivity, promoting global integration and green growth, sustainably using and managing natural resources, responding to disasters and climate change, pushing digital transformation, developing human resources and bolstering tourism.

They underscored the reciprocal complementarity between sub-regions’ development efforts and ASEAN’s connectivity process, thus agreeing on a need to effectively capitalise on cooperation potential of sub-regions to offer more opportunities to enterprises in and outside the region.

Delegates spoke highly of Vietnam’s role and contributions to promoting sub-regional development cooperation for the goal of even and sustainable growth in the region.

Ideas and recommendations at the event will be submitted to ASEAN leaders for consideration.