Led By Indonesia, ASEAN+3 Agrees To Strengthen Financial Cooperation In The Region

JAKARTA ASEAN, led by Indonesia, has succeeded in reaching an agreement with three partner countries (Japan, China, and Korea) regarding strengthening financial cooperation in the region.

Representatives of the Indonesian Ministry of Finance Yogi Rahmayanti said the meeting discussed a cooperation agenda to strengthen economic and financial stability in the region through strengthening theungki Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM).

"We address this as a regional self-help mechanism and the development of potential new facilities for the prevention and handling of regional financial crises in order to answer the dynamics and challenges of the global economy that continue to grow as needed," he said in a press statement, Wednesday, July 12.

Yogi revealed that the agenda meeting also discussed strengthening the capacity of the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO).

"We encourage this forum as a surveillance institution that supports the implementation of crisis prevention and control facilities in the region and providers of surveillance capacity strengthening programs for ASEAN+3 member countries," he said.

For information, the latest progress is currently the continuation and mandate of the meeting of the Ministers of Finance and the Governor of the Central Bank of ASEAN+3 countries last May. Meanwhile, the topics discussed include policy dialogue, coordination, and cooperation in the fields of finance, monetary and fiscal.

Other agendas that were no less important discussed at the meeting also included strategic studies that are of major concern in the region, including studies related to local currency transactions to encourage the use of local currencies for cross-border transactions between countries in the region, "he said.

"We are also reviewing sustainable financing, as well as studies related to the risk of financial stability in the region caused by corporate debt," continued Yogi.

To note, the results of discussions from the agendas of the third meeting of the ASEAN+3 Task Force will be submitted and discussed further at the next ASEAN+3 Task Force meeting in September 2023.