In conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2017, the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) and On the Move (OTM) are launching the updated guides for the 10 countries of the ASEAN Region, namely Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam. In addition, an updated version of the Focus on Asia Guide is also published; Focus on Asia covers funding opportunities for the ASEM Asian member countries and is organised around different themes, including culture and development. This Guide is particularly useful for countries that do not have dedicated national sources of funding.
The publishing of the 10 Guides for the ASEAN region coincides with the launch of Mobility First! ASEF Cultural Mobility Initiative in recognition of existing funding gaps in this area, particularly in the Asia-Asia and Asia-Europe contexts. This initiative seeks to reaffirm the importance of face–to-face encounters not only in knowledge and experience sharing, but also in setting up long-term alliances and partnerships based on trust, reciprocity and fair exchange.