Top ASEAN officials discuss social welfare

HA NOI (VNS)— The 7th ASEAN Senior Officials' Meeting between China, Japan and the Republic of Korea on Social Welfare and Development (SOMSWD+3) was held in Ha Noi yesterday.

In his opening speech, Viet Nam's Deputy Minister of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Trong Dam said that disadvantaged people were always the last to enjoy the benefits of science and technology development. Meanwhile, they were the first to suffer from socio-economic turbulence such as economic crisis and natural disasters. Therefore, regional countries should work harder to boost social welfare and development.

During the meeting, ASEAN member countries and the three partners shared views on measures to enhance social services and security for the disadvantaged, exchanged updates on ongoing projects on social welfare and development, and mapped out future plans.

Over the past years, the three ASEAN partners have provided technical and financial assistance to ASEAN member countries via training courses and seminars to improve awareness and competence in this issue. — VNS