NL & ASEAN - Indonesia
On 4 September 2023, the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting officially granted the Netherlands the status of ASEAN Development Partner, in recognition of our existing cooperation and with the intention of strengthening our ties. Today, we work together in many areas across all three ASEAN pillars: political security, economics, and social culture. Below, you can find some examples of the activities that we work on.
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Diplomatic training for ASEAN Member States
The Netherlands has been providing various diplomatic training programs for ASEAN since 2010. Annually, the Netherlands Institute for Foreign Relations Clingendael organizes a program for diplomats of each ASEAN Member State, as well as the ASEAN Secretariat, on general diplomatic skills.
In addition, the Netherlands Institute for the Law of the Sea (NILOS) collaborates with Clingendael to provide an annual course on the law of the sea.
ASEAN Institute for Peace and Reconciliation
The Embassy of the Netherlands is active in promoting peace, security, and stability in the region, together with partners. One valuable partnership lies with the ASEAN Institute for Peace and Reconciliation.
Together, we organize a celebration of International Peace Day each year in September. Through activities such as panels, student dialogues, and policy briefing competitions, the role of youth in peacebuilding is highlighted.
In 2023, ASEAN ambassadors, representatives from the ASEAN Secretariat, and students were invited to the Erasmus Huis. The students shared their thoughts and ideas on the Indonesian National Action Plan for Youth, Peace, and Security after listening to experts from the Philippines in a panel discussion.
EU-SHARE and SCOPE HE
The Netherlands is also active in working together with ASEAN through the EU. The project European Union Support for Higher Education (EU-SHARE) in the ASEAN Region was launched in 2015. The aim was to strengthen regional cooperation and enhance the quality, competitiveness, and internationalization of higher education institutions and students in ASEAN. There are 32 universities in the ASEAN member states and 10 universities in Europe connected to the project. Nuffic, a Dutch organization working on internationalization in education, has been implementing the project for over seven years.
Nuffic Southeast Asia will soon embark on the implementation of the new EU-funded Sustainable Connectivity Package Higher Education (SCOPE HE) program. SCOPE HE will aim to strengthen human connections between ASEAN and the EU by focusing on gender equality, women's empowerment, digital skills, and green skills within the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity 2025 (MPAC). Through this initiative, individuals, institutions, and societies in both regions will benefit from enhanced knowledge-sharing, inclusive practices, and a more robust global partnership.