Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Corazon Juliano-Soliman led the Philippine delegation to the 11th Meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Council held on April 3-4 where she conveyed the country’s full and active participation in efforts to carry out aspirations to lift the quality of life of the people in the region.

“With only less than two years to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), it is a great challenge for us in the ASEAN region to show the world of what we have collectively and individually achieved as a region and as a member-state, respectively,” Sec. Soliman said in her message to the body.

The two-day 2014 ASEAN ASCC meeting which carried the theme, “Moving Forward in Unity Towards a Peaceful and Prosperous Community,” discussed the current development gaps among ASEAN countries, issues on migrant workers, and climate change, among others.

Sec. Soliman also took the opportunity to thank the member-states and the ASEAN Secretariat for the aid extended to the Philippines in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).

ASCC Blueprint

Meanwhile, Sec. Soliman expressed appreciation to the sustained effort and enthusiasm of the ASEAN Senior Officials in carrying out the implementation of the ASCC Blueprint.

The ASCC Blueprint, which was adopted by the ASEAN Leaders in the 14th ASEAN Summit in March 2009 in Thailand, represents the human dimension of cooperation and upholds commitment to address the region’s aspiration for more improved lives.

The Philippines will participate in the Work Group that is tasked to develop a work plan focusing on follow-up actions from the ASCC Mid-Term Review and identifying central elements of the post-2015 vision.

Sec. Soliman said the Philippines is committed to support the Declaration on Strengthening Social Protection in the ASEAN and the Declaration on Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW) and Elimination of Violence Against Children (EVAC).

“We look forward to participate in the inter-sectoral workshops to be spearheaded by Cambodia and the dialogues to be organized by the ASEAN Secretariat and the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC),” she added.

She hoped that the draft instrument on the implementation of the Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers would be finalized this year by the Drafting Committee.

“It is high time that we put primordial importance to the rights and welfare of migrant workers and their families,” she said.

Climate change

With the occurrence of super typhoons, flashfloods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions which became the “new normal” in the region, Sec. Soliman pointed out that there is a need to further enhance ASEAN’s leadership in regional disaster management and resilience.

“We look forward to more discussions on the multi-sectoral responses to disaster management and disaster risk reduction,” she said.

Priority setting

The Secretary believed that the post MDG 2015 priorities setting process should consciously engage all ASEAN sectoral bodies for a unified framework.

Initially, the Philippines considers the inclusion of the following in the ASEAN’s post 2015 priorities: poverty reduction with focus on marginalized sectors; advancing inclusive growth through social protection, food security, and nutrition security; HIV and AIDS to be regarded not only as  health problems but also as  human development problems; education in Emergencies and Disaster Risk Reduction Management (E/DRRM); and gender equality and women’s rights to accelerate global development beyond 2015. ###