On 25 March 2022, H.E. Urawadee Sriphiromya, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Thailand to ASEAN, co-chaired the 16^th ASEAN-Japan Joint Cooperation Committee Meeting via videoconferencing with H.E. Akira Chiba, Ambassador of Japan to ASEAN.  At the Meeting, Ambassador Sriphiromya gave
a briefing on sustainable development cooperation within ASEAN, particularly the work of the ASEAN Centre for Sustainable Development Studies and Dialogue (ACSDSD) and the High-Level Brainstorming Dialogue on Enhancing Complementarities between the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (HLBD) which has been co-hosted by Thailand and the UNESCAP since 2017.  Ambassador Sriphiromya also took this opportunity to promote the Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) Economy Model as part of the post COVID-19 recovery strategies. This year, Thailand is hosting the ASEAN BCG Knowledge Sharing Series and will invite ASEAN partners to share their experience in thematic areas related to the BCG Economy Model.

Both sides had common interest in promoting cooperation in climate change, health, connectivity and quality infrastructure, digital transformation, trade, and investment. In addition, the Meeting agreed to hold a logo design and catchphrase contest from April to June 2022 as part of the activities to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of ASEAN-Japan relations next year. (Details at: https://www.asean.or.jp/en/ajc/50th-logo-catchphrase/)

Thailand is the current Country Coordinator for ASEAN-Japan Dialogue Relations, having assumed
this three-year-term position since August 2021.

Photo Courtesy of the ASEAN Secretariat