Singapore (VNA) – About 50 leaders of civil society organisations (CSOs) from 10ASEAN countries have attended the third ASEAN Forum, which opened on March 14in Singapore, to discuss ways to build the ASEAN Community of political andeconomic connection and shared social responsibilities.

Participantsat the two-day event focused on seeking measures to boost ASEAN progress andimprove welfares for people in the region through activities related toadolescent education, culture and information.

They willgive ideas on building an action plan for the implementation of the ASEANVision 2025.

They willalso discuss with ASEAN experts on the roadmap of the vision as well asopportunities of cooperation among relevant parties from both private andpublic sectors.

Elaine Tan,Executive Director of the ASEAN Foundation, said that the mobilization of CSOs inthe building of the ASEAN Community is among key issues, as the organisationsrepresent people’s voice.

Meanwhile,Huynh Hanh Phuc from the Vietnamese delegation, who is founder of the Teach forAll organization that covers five countries of Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia,the Philippines and Vietnam, said that Vietnam wants to send a message that CSOswill seek a common voice to contribute to the building of a strong ASEANCommunity in all fields, especially in education and culture.

Phuc andother delegates expressed their wish that different CSOs in the region accessinformation on activities in each country to include them in the action plan ofASEAN ministers.

He addedthat the CSOs are seeking the engagement of talents from different sectors in education,while seeking investment from foundations in the world.-VNA